Damaged Cars Wanted Hands Gauteng Owners Cash at Pickup

Selling a non-running or written-off car to a stranger raises one worry above all others: when does the seller actually get paid? Damaged Cars Wanted, the vehicle buying service operated by Lou Appel's Auto Spares out of its Booysens Road yard in Selby, Johannesburg, keeps the answer simple. No car leaves until the money has cleared or the seller is holding it. With Gauteng drivers trying to tie up loose ends ahead of the festive break this November, the company is making that payment guarantee the core of the way it buys.

Damaged Cars Wanted buys cars, bakkies, 4x4s, SUVs and light delivery vehicles that are accident-damaged, non-running or simply no longer wanted, throughout Gauteng and especially in Johannesburg and nearby areas. The same Selby yard has been buying damaged vehicles since 1939.

Paid first, then collected, by EFT or cash

When a seller agrees to an offer, the team arranges either a tow truck or a driver, depending on whether the vehicle still runs. Payment is made on collection day before the truck leaves. Sellers decide whether they want an EFT into their bank account or cash on the spot.

Anyone looking to sell your damaged car without having to chase a buyer for payment later benefits from this sequence, because it takes away the largest risk in the deal. At no point is the seller left with neither the car nor the money.

Same-day offers from a handful of photos

Getting started takes only a few details. Sellers can reach the team by phone, email, WhatsApp or through the website form, and are asked to send four to six photos of the front, back, both sides, the engine bay and the dashboard, and to say whether the car runs. Once the team has the photos and the VIN, a preliminary offer usually follows within a few hours.

The website makes it clear what the company avoids: there are no auction rounds and no inflated quote that shrinks at inspection. Sellers may accept or counter, and the team will either agree or explain what is preventing it from reaching that figure. Neither side is obliged to proceed.

Vehicles the yard takes

According to the company, it buys any make, model or year, in any condition. Common cases include front-end smashes, side and rear impacts and rollovers, whether the insurer has coded the vehicle Code 2, 3 or 4. Non-runners and cars with mechanical failures are also bought, including blown gearboxes, seized engines, slipping clutches and broken timing chains.

The list extends to hail, flood, water and fire damage, as well as electrical faults such as dead body control modules and immobiliser issues. The website points out that fault codes do not reduce the offer. High-mileage vehicles and cars that have stood for years, under a cover or behind a workshop, are bought regularly.

No-cost collection in Gauteng

Collection anywhere in Gauteng costs nothing and does not come off the offer. For vehicles outside the province, collection is quoted individually. Owners of roadworthy cars can also bring them to the Selby yard themselves.

The majority of sales wrap up within 24 to 48 hours, with photos sent in the morning, an offer that same day and payment and collection the following day. Local sellers who are ready can often move even faster.

Paperwork done for the seller

After payment, the paperwork is usually the next concern. Damaged Cars Wanted takes care of the NATIS change of ownership, SAPS clearance when required and yard deregistration. The seller signs once at collection, and the team completes the remaining filings.

Sellers should ideally have the original NATIS document, or a duplicate from their closest licensing department. Where papers have gone missing or a finance hold applies, the team has handled both before and simply asks to be told at the start.

Timing before the holidays

November is when many households clear outstanding tasks before the shutdown, and a damaged car sitting in the driveway after an accident or an earlier storm is often on that list. Deciding to sell damaged cars to a buyer that pays before it collects means the whole matter is settled in a single visit, with funds in the account before the holidays start.

Decades in the motor trade help the company reach a fair price. With more than eighty years of buying damaged vehicles behind it, the team already knows the value of a gearbox, the likely cost of panel work and which parts still have use. Its method for selling damaged cars focuses on landing a fair figure the first time instead of negotiating the seller down twice.

A different way to sell

The website speaks openly about the problem it addresses. Selling a car that is written off, accident-damaged or not running tends to end badly in one of two ways: a towing bill that cuts into the price, or weeks of messages from buyers who never follow through. Damaged Cars Wanted presents itself as the other option, offering a single offer, no later calls from random buyers and towing paid for by the company.

Where a vehicle is insured, the company says that if the insurer plans to write off a hail-damaged car and the salvage offer is low, it will pay the owner directly.

When the office is open

Office hours run Monday to Friday, 9am to 3pm, with weekends closed. Sellers should phone ahead on public holidays. As year end draws near, anyone wanting a collection before the break is encouraged to send photos early.

Offers can be requested, photos uploaded and the complete list of vehicles bought viewed at https://damagedcarswanted.co.za/.

About Damaged Cars Wanted

Damaged Cars Wanted is a vehicle buying service run by Lou Appel's Auto Spares, which has bought damaged cars and bakkies from its yard at 233 Booysens Road, Selby, Johannesburg, since 1939. The company buys accident-damaged, non-running, hail-damaged, water-damaged, fire-damaged and high-mileage vehicles throughout Gauteng, provides same-day preliminary offers, collects free of charge within the province and manages NATIS, SAPS clearance and deregistration paperwork in-house.