Everyone has probably heard about the attractiveness of importing damaged cars from the US. The market there is characterized by great specificity - even slightly damaged vehicles are often treated as unfit for re-entry in the US - a characteristic of a developed market with high repair costs and the result of the formation of the legal and insurance market. The facts are that this type of vehicle sometimes in very good condition (or after light flooding) can be bought almost for nothing and brought to Poland.
However, the problem may arise from a completely different angle than the issue of the vehicle's efficiency - well, the importer may unexpectedly be notified that his car is being trashed as waste under international waste shipment regulations. Shortly thereafter, the owner of such a vehicle may also be summoned by the Chief Inspectorate of Environmental Protection (GIOŚ) to immediately dispose of the imported car, motorcycle or other type of vehicle. A quick and effective response, presenting the appropriate legal argumentation, is essential in such a situation and crucial to possibly saving the vehicle from a final and enforceable disposal decision.
- Salvage, Nonrepairable, etc. type documents. - when are they issued?
The low price of damaged vehicles in the US is often due to the fact that they have type certificates Salvage Certificate, or Nonrepairable Vehicle Title. Such titles are usually held by vehicles that have been affected by floods, tornadoes, hurricanes and other natural disasters. Suffice it to recall that during the famous Hurricane Katrina some 200,000 cars were affected. Having to deal with such a large number of damaged vehicles, US appraisers overwhelmingly qualify them legally as beyond repair. One can venture to say that the decisions are a result of the high cost of performing detailed expertise and possible disputes, as well as strict laws.
It is common in the US that, despite not very serious damage to the vehicle, it is not repaired by the owner, but given to the insurance company, which pays compensation in such a situation in an amount equal to the total damage to the vehicle, in exchange for handing over the car to the insurer, who sells the car at auction. A sizable group of companies and dealers in the US make a living from the recovery of such vehicles. However, the trade in such vehicles does not prosper in all US states. This is due to laws prohibiting the registration of such vehicles. This is the case in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas and Vermont, among others. Among others in these States, the only way to make a profit from a damaged car turns out to be to resell it abroad or to another US State.
- Importation and registration of a vehicle with Salvage or Nonrepairable title
Even after the car has been repaired, passed its first technical inspection in the country and even registered, unexpectedly the GIOŚ may declare the vehicle (previously titled Salvage or Nonrepairable in the US) as waste and order it to be returned to a dismantling station within 30 days. The consequences are, of course, irreversible. The authority usually makes a top-down interpretation of Salvage and Nonrepairable documents as irrefutable evidence that the vehicle is waste, without confronting the content of the document with the actual state of the vehicle.
Polish authorities are rarely in a position to determine in which situations this document is issued in the various U.S. states, and in which states this document can mean the exclusion of a vehicle from operation and in which states a separate document applies. Such a document may prevent registration only if it bears the entries listed in the position of the Minister of Transport and Construction of March 13, 2006, No. TD4S-022/77/06, in an enumerative manner, indicating that the vehicle is destined for disposal: "For Junk" or "Parts Only." Thus, a document of the Salvage Certificate or Nonrepairable Vehicle Title type should be considered in Poland mainly as a document constituting proof of ownership of a vehicle, which, according to the disposition of Article 72(1)(1) of the Road Traffic Law of June 20, 1997, is required to register a machine in Poland. Therefore, the content of the documents from the US in no way affects the possibility of registering the vehicle in the territory of the Republic of Poland. Indeed, a party to the vehicle registration proceedings may present any proof of ownership of the vehicle.
In contrast, the greatest evidentiary value in the proceedings for recognition of a vehicle as waste should definitely be accorded to the issue of the actual technical condition of the vehicle, the opinions of relevant experts and specialists in the field of auto mechanics. This is because it cannot be brought to a situation where three words contained in a document of a given American State have greater evidentiary value than the facts of the case, and other evidence that directly indicates the correct technical condition of the vehicle.
Thus, it should be considered that the American document should be seen as a confirmation of the vehicle's lawful origin, and the mechanic's/expert's opinion, inspection documents, etc., showing the vehicle's efficiency - as a confirmation of its proper technical condition. Thus, if there is no doubt about the ownership of the vehicle and its technical condition confirmed by the relevant evidence, then there are also no grounds for refusing to register such a vehicle in the Republic of Poland.
- When can a vehicle be considered waste?
Of course, not all vehicles can avoid being considered waste illegally shipped into Poland. According to Article 32 of the Law on International Shipments of Waste, the Provincial Inspector of Environmental Protection shall impose a fine of between PLN 50,000 and PLN 500,000 on the recipient of waste illegally imported without notification, by decision.
According to para. 6 paragraph 1. of Art. 3 of the Law on Waste Waste is considered to be any substance or object that the holder disposes of, intends to dispose of, or is obligated to dispose of. Bringing a salvage vehicle to Poland therefore definitely does not automatically imply an illegal shipment of waste or the possibility of assuming disposal of the car by the previous owner. Such "disposal" must be proven exhaustively and beyond a reasonable doubt by the authority making the claim that the vehicle must be disposed of.
- The authority competent to assess the conditions for the approval of a vehicle in Poland.
In letters addressed to purchasers of salvage vehicles brought to Poland from the US, the Chief Inspectorate for Environmental Protection very often expresses an opinion on the possibility of registering a given vehicle in Poland. However, the possibility of the GIOŚ using arguments about the impossibility of registering the vehicle on the territory of the country due to the lack of a "Certificate of Title of Vehicle" document (American title of the vehicle) when determining the status of waste should be questioned. This is because there is no doubt that the authority, in light of Article 73 of the Law of June 20, 1997. - Road Traffic Law, is not the authority competent to register vehicles, and thus to assess the fulfillment of the conditions for admission to registration referred to, among other things, in Article 72 of that Law. It should also be borne in mind that in 2008 the Chief Inspectorate of the Environment introduced a change in the guidelines regarding the treatment of cars with a "Total Loss" entry - total damage.
The above issue is outlined above against the background of the US market, although it also applies to vehicles imported from the territory of other countries.
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The law firm of Jaskowiak Nadra Attorneys offers Comprehensive legal support services for legal support in the proceedings for recognition of a vehicle imported from the US as waste based on Salvage, Nonrepairable, etc. documents. The lack of an adequate legal response in the situation of a call for disposal of a vehicle that objectively cannot be considered waste, results in the risk of significant financial damage to the buyer of a US vehicle. In order to avoid the negative and irreversible consequences of the lack of objective and comprehensive consideration of the case - we invite you to contacting the law firm Immediately after receiving the first letter from the GIOŚ. We have many years of experience in handling cases before the GIOŚ and Administrative Courts. A detailed offer is available here.
