Virginia Vehicle History — Salvage Certificates and the REBUILT Brand (Reports from $4.99)

In Virginia, the insurer’s salvage duty turns on whether a car counts as "late model" — roughly the newest six model years, or worth $10,000 or more before the damage. A repaired salvage car gets a REBUILT brand that the DMV carries onto every later title.

🇺🇸
US-VA
Virginia

Official vehicle-registry authority: Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)

Why Virginia is different

Virginia’s salvage law is in Chapter 16 of Title 46.2 of the Code of Virginia. Section 46.2-1600 defines a "late model vehicle" as the current model year plus the five preceding years, or any vehicle with an actual cash value of at least $10,000 before it was damaged. A late-model car an insurer takes in a claim becomes a salvage vehicle when the estimated repair cost, ignoring towing, storage and rental, exceeds its actual cash value minus its salvage value. A recovered stolen car is salvage when repairs would exceed 75 percent of that value.

The late-model test is where a Virginia buyer should look hardest. An older car below $10,000 falls outside the insurer-driven salvage definition, so serious damage on such a car may never reach a salvage certificate unless the owner applies for one. At the other end, §46.2-1603.2 lets an owner or insurer declare a car nonrepairable; no registration or plates can then be issued for it, and another state’s "junk," "for parts only" or "not to be repaired" brand is treated the same way.

Getting a salvage car back on the road takes two checks under §46.2-1605: a Virginia safety inspection, then an examination by the DMV, which the DMV’s rebuilt-vehicle page says is carried out by a DMV Special Agent. The statute states plainly that this examination does not certify safety or roadworthiness. Once approved, the title is branded REBUILT for the life of the vehicle, and a seller hands the buyer a Rebuilt Vehicle Disclosure Statement (VSA 59). Read the title face, then compare it with the car’s auction and history records.

Title rules in Virginia at a glance

Title agency
Virginia DMV. Rebuilt exams are scheduled by a DMV Special Agent; branded titles come from the Vehicle Branding Work Center.
Salvage trigger
Late-model insurer-acquired vehicle whose repair estimate exceeds actual cash value less salvage value; recovered stolen vehicle with repairs above 75% of actual cash value (§46.2-1600).
Title brands
Salvage certificate, nonrepairable certificate, and the permanent REBUILT brand.
Rebuilt inspection
Virginia safety inspection, then DMV examination (§46.2-1605); form LES 022A, $125 exam fee. The exam does not certify roadworthiness.
Older-vehicle exemption
Insurer salvage rules cover late-model vehicles only: current plus five preceding model years, or worth $10,000 or more before damage.
Seller disclosure
Rebuilt Vehicle Disclosure Statement (VSA 59) required when selling a rebuilt vehicle.

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Title brands in Virginia

Salvage certificate
Issued in place of a regular title for a salvage vehicle as defined in §46.2-1600. The car cannot be registered or plated until it is rebuilt and examined.
Nonrepairable certificate
For a vehicle with no value except as parts or scrap. Under §46.2-1603.2 no registration or license plates may be issued for it, and the title is cancelled.
REBUILT
The brand the DMV puts on the title of a repaired salvage car, or a late-model car whose repairs exceeded 75% of its actual cash value. The DMV says it is permanent and carries forward to every later title.
Out-of-state junk designations
A vehicle another state branded "junk," "for destruction," "for parts only," "not to be repaired" or similar is treated in Virginia as if it held that state’s nonrepairable certificate (§46.2-1603.2).

Red flags specific to Virginia

⚠ Older, lower-value car with heavy damage
The insurer-driven salvage definition only covers late-model vehicles — the newest six model years or those worth $10,000 or more. A badly damaged older car can stay on a regular title, so the history report and auction photos matter more than the title.
⚠ Rebuilt car sold without a DMV exam
The DMV’s rebuilt page lets long-licensed dealers skip the exam for vehicles at least 10 years old, not antiques, with a resale value under $10,000. Ask whether the exam was done and who did the repairs.
⚠ Treating the REBUILT exam as a safety check
§46.2-1605 says the DMV examination does not certify the vehicle’s safety or roadworthiness. Have an independent mechanic look at structure, airbags and alignment before you buy.
⚠ Car that once carried a parts-only brand elsewhere
Virginia treats another state’s parts-only or not-to-be-repaired brand as nonrepairable, so such a car should not be registered here at all. A clean-looking title on one of these cars needs explaining.

Frequently asked questions

Under Code of Virginia §46.2-1600, a late model vehicle is one from the current model year or the five preceding model years, or any vehicle whose actual cash value was at least $10,000 before it was damaged. Insurer salvage rules apply to these vehicles.

For a late-model vehicle an insurer takes in a claim, it becomes salvage when the estimated repair cost (excluding towing, storage, rental and diminished value) would exceed its actual cash value less its current salvage value. For a recovered stolen vehicle, the test is repairs above 75 percent of actual cash value.

No. Section 46.2-1603.2 says no registration or license plates may be issued for a vehicle described in a nonrepairable certificate. The same treatment applies to a vehicle another state branded junk, for destruction, for parts only or not to be repaired.

The repaired vehicle must pass a Virginia safety inspection and then a DMV examination under §46.2-1605. The DMV’s rebuilt page lists the Request for Examination (LES 022A), a $125 examination fee and a $15 substitute title fee; a DMV Special Agent schedules the exam.

No. The Virginia DMV states that the REBUILT brand is permanent and carries forward to every title issued for the vehicle for its whole life.

No. Section 46.2-1605 says the department’s examination does not certify the safety or roadworthiness of the vehicle. It is a document and identity check, so a pre-purchase inspection by a mechanic is still worth doing.

The DMV lists a Rebuilt Vehicle Disclosure Statement (VSA 59) as required when a rebuilt vehicle is sold. Keep it with the title, and check the car’s history and any Copart or IAAI auction records for the original damage.

Sources

Legal facts on this page were checked against these official sources in November 2026.

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