IAA vehicles are salvage vehicles, and salvage vehicles are an equipment problem before they are a logistics problem. The first question on any IAA move is not how far, but whether the car rolls, brakes, and steers.
IAA handles insurance total losses, damaged units, theft recoveries, and vehicles written off after flood, fire, or collision. A large share of the inventory does not drive. Some will not roll at all. That reality determines which carriers can take the job, how the vehicle is loaded, and how long assignment takes.
The second pressure is the storage clock, which behaves as it does at any salvage venue. A free period follows the sale, then daily fees begin. The window is short enough that indecision is expensive.
The third is access. IAA branches are secured yards with defined hours, and in some states collection is limited to licensed brokers or dealers rather than the buying public.
This guide covers what IAA requires before release, how condition dictates equipment, how to book inside the free window, and where IAA differs from the other salvage venues you may also be buying from.
What IAA Requires Before Release
A carrier cannot collect an IAA vehicle on goodwill. Two states must both be true, and they are distinct.
Payment must have cleared. Not initiated, not pending, cleared. The method you choose at purchase directly determines how much of the free storage window remains by the time anything can move. Faster-settling methods routinely buy back a day or more.
The vehicle must be released. Release is a separate flag from payment. A buyer who has paid but whose unit has not been marked for release will still see the carrier refused at the gate, and the storage meter continues regardless.
What the dispatcher needs
To complete a collection, the carrier needs enough to prove authority and locate the vehicle:
- Buyer identification tied to the purchasing account.
- Stock or lot number, which is how the driver finds the unit in a yard holding hundreds of vehicles.
- Release documentation or gate credentials for that branch.
- Condition detail, specifically whether the vehicle rolls, brakes, steers, and whether keys exist.
The condition field is the one that changes the dispatch. The others determine whether the driver gets in; condition determines whether the vehicle can leave.
Branch, not city
IAA operates many branches, and larger markets have more than one. Take the branch address from the lot record rather than assuming the nearest facility.
Condition Decides the Equipment
Salvage transport turns on three mechanical questions, and the answers determine which carriers can even bid on the load.
Does it roll? Wheels must turn freely. Collision damage, seized bearings, and missing wheels all defeat this, and a vehicle that will not roll needs a forklift rather than a winch.
Does it brake? A vehicle that cannot be held on a slope is dangerous to load and to secure. Brake failure is common on flood units and on cars that have sat for months.
Does it steer? Steering must be free enough to guide the vehicle onto the trailer. Front-end collision damage frequently destroys this, and a locked steering column has the same effect.
A vehicle passing all three can usually be winched onto standard equipment. Failing any one narrows the pool considerably.
Keys deserve separate mention. IAA units are often released without keys. A car with a healthy engine and no keys is treated as inoperable for loading, because it cannot be started or steered under its own power. Buyers routinely miss this because the listing focuses on damage rather than on what was handed over.
The safe practice is to describe the vehicle at its worst plausible condition. A unit booked as non-running that turns out to drive costs nothing. The reverse costs a wasted dispatch, a second booking, and the storage days between them.
One further check is worth making before you bid rather than after. Ask whether the vehicle has been moved since intake. A unit that staff have repositioned within the yard has demonstrably rolled recently, which is useful evidence. A vehicle that has sat untouched in the same spot since it arrived tells you considerably less about whether it still will.
Flood, Fire, and Theft Recovery Units
Certain salvage categories behave unpredictably at loading, and they are worth calling out because listing photographs rarely reveal the problem.
Flood vehicles may look intact and still be immobile. Water damage seizes brakes, corrodes wheel bearings, and destroys electrical systems that control steering locks. A flood unit photographed on a clean lot can be entirely unrollable by collection day, particularly if weeks have passed since the loss.
Fire damage varies enormously by where the fire started. An engine-bay fire may leave the running gear serviceable. A fire that reached the cabin or the wheels usually means forklift loading, and melted components can make the vehicle wider or more fragile than its dimensions suggest.
Theft recoveries are the most variable of all. Some are undamaged and drive away. Others are missing wheels, seats, or the entire drivetrain, which changes both weight and how the vehicle can be secured to a trailer.
Rollovers and severe collisions frequently exceed standard dimensions once panels are displaced, and a vehicle that no longer sits square on its wheels may not fit a standard slot.
When a lot record is silent on drivability for any of these categories, treat the silence as a warning. Booking for winch or forklift capability and finding it unnecessary is a far better outcome than the alternative.
Where the Vehicle Is Going Matters as Much as Where It Is
Salvage buyers plan the collection carefully and the delivery barely at all, which is why more IAA moves stall at the destination than at the branch.
A non-running vehicle cannot complete the last stretch. On a retail purchase, a driver can park at the end of the street and the owner drives the final few metres. That option does not exist here. Wherever the trailer stops is where the vehicle stays.
Large carriers need room. A multi-car transporter needs length to park, clearance overhead, and space to operate a winch or ramp. Residential streets with parked cars, low branches, or tight turns frequently cannot accommodate one, and a driveway is rarely the answer.
The realistic destinations are commercial. Most salvage units go to a body shop, a mechanic, a dismantler, a storage yard, or a dealer lot. All are staffed, accessible, and equipped to receive a vehicle that does not move under its own power.
Someone has to receive it. Unloading a non-runner is not a drop-and-go. If the destination is unattended, the delivery cannot be completed and the vehicle may be returned or held.
Decide the destination before you bid, not after you win. A rebuilder with a shop arrangement already in place moves faster and more cheaply than a buyer discovering at delivery that their street cannot take a transporter.
Booking Inside the Free Window
- Settle payment immediately, by the fastest method available. Every hour before clearance is an hour of the free window spent.
- Confirm the release flag, not just the payment. Check the lot shows as released before you dispatch anything.
- Read the condition fields properly. Establish roll, brake, steer, and keys. Where any is unstated, assume the worse case and say so at booking.
- Take the branch address from the lot record. Not the metro area, and not the nearest facility.
- Book on the first full day. Assignment is not collection. A carrier who accepts the load still needs a routing slot that fits the branch’s access hours.
- Confirm branch hours and access rules. Yards keep narrower hours than retail businesses, often exclude weekends, and may restrict entry to licensed brokers in some states.
- Photograph the vehicle if you can access it. On a salvage unit the pre-existing damage is extensive, and the pickup condition report is what separates it from anything that happens in transit.
Two factors quietly shorten the window. Rural branches have thinner carrier coverage, and non-running units draw on a smaller pool of winch-equipped trucks. A non-runner at a remote branch should be booked the moment release posts.
Title, Paperwork, and What Transport Does Not Cover
Transport moves the vehicle. It does not resolve the paperwork that determines what you can do with it afterwards, and conflating the two causes avoidable frustration.
Salvage and rebuilt titles travel with the vehicle, not with the carrier. A carrier’s job ends at delivery against the condition report. Title transfer, branding, and any state inspection required to retitle a rebuilt vehicle are separate processes handled between you, the auction, and your state authority.
State rules differ, and they affect where a vehicle can usefully go. Some states restrict who may purchase or register salvage units, and requirements for rebuilt inspections vary considerably. Buyers occasionally move a vehicle across state lines only to discover the destination state treats its brand differently.
The Bill of Lading is not a title document. It records condition and custody during transit and nothing more. It will not help establish ownership.
Transport does not verify the vehicle matches its description. The driver documents visible condition at pickup. Confirming that the unit is what the listing claimed, including its VIN and specification, is the buyer’s responsibility and is easier before the vehicle travels several hundred miles.
The practical takeaway is to settle the title question and the destination state’s rules before arranging transport, because the vehicle is far harder to redirect once it is moving.
What to Expect at Pickup and Delivery
At the branch, the driver presents credentials, IAA staff release the vehicle, and the driver completes a condition report before loading. On salvage units this documentation is unusually detailed, precisely because most of the damage predates the transport. Separating what you bought from what happened afterwards is the report’s entire purpose.
Loading takes longer than on a running vehicle. Winching a non-runner, securing a unit with damaged attachment points, or forklifting a car that will not roll all add time at the yard. This is normal and is not a sign of a problem.
Transit follows standard patterns, one to twelve business days in most cases, driven by distance and lane density.
Delivery needs more planning than a retail purchase. A non-running vehicle cannot cover the last stretch on its own, and a large carrier often cannot reach a residential street. Decide before pickup where the vehicle will actually be unloaded, and whether you need it delivered to a body shop, a storage yard, or a commercial address with space to work.
Inspect against the pickup condition report rather than the auction listing photographs. Listing images were taken at intake, under different lighting, possibly months earlier. They are not a transport baseline. Note any new damage on the delivery receipt before signing.
How IAA Compares to Other Venues
Buyers frequently use IAA and Copart together, and the transport shape is similar enough that one dispatcher handles both comfortably.
Against Copart: both deal in salvage and insurance total losses, so both skew heavily toward non-running inventory and both make equipment the binding constraint. Both operate secured yards with restricted hours and state-dependent access rules. Both run a free storage period followed by daily fees. The credentials differ in name and format, but each serves the same four functions: prove purchase, prove release, locate the unit, open the gate. See Copart Auto Auction Shipping.
Against Manheim: the contrast is sharp. Manheim is a dealer wholesale marketplace where vehicles generally drive and the difficulty is authorisation, location-specific gate passes, and scheduling around sale days. IAA is the reverse: access is restrictive but manageable, and the vehicle itself is the hard part. See Manheim Auction Transport.
The useful summary is that salvage venues make you solve for equipment, and wholesale venues make you solve for credentials and timing. Knowing which problem you have before booking is most of the work.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can anyone collect a vehicle from IAA?
Access rules vary by branch and by state. Some locations restrict collection to licensed brokers or dealers rather than the buying public. Confirm the branch’s rules before you bid, not after.
What if the vehicle turns out not to roll?
The pickup is rescheduled with forklift-capable equipment, which means a second dispatch and additional storage days. This is the single most common avoidable cost on salvage transport, and accurate condition reporting at booking prevents it.
Can you collect a vehicle without keys?
Usually yes, but it must be declared at booking. A vehicle without keys is handled as inoperable for loading regardless of engine condition, because it cannot be started or steered onto the trailer.
How long is the free storage period?
A short free period follows the sale, after which daily fees apply. The exact length varies by branch and sale type, so read the terms on the specific lot rather than relying on a figure remembered from a previous purchase.
Can a salvage vehicle be delivered to my house?
Often not directly. A non-running unit cannot be driven the final stretch, and large carriers frequently cannot access residential streets. Many buyers have salvage units delivered to a body shop or a commercial address instead.
Does extensive damage prevent shipping?
No. Damaged and non-running vehicles are routine salvage freight. Damage changes the equipment and the documentation, not whether the move is possible.
Should I buy transport before or after bidding?
Get an indication before you bid, particularly for a non-running unit at a rural branch. Transport on a difficult salvage move is a real component of the total cost, and knowing it in advance changes what you are willing to pay in the lane.
Can two salvage units ship together?
Yes, where they share a lane and the equipment suits both. Two non-runners may need winch capability for each, which is a different load to plan than one runner and one non-runner. Tell your coordinator the condition of every unit rather than describing the group.
Why Ship With Tempus Logix
Tempus Logix is a licensed and bonded auto transport broker, USDOT #3117533 and MC #86120, and BBB accredited. Every carrier we assign is vetted and its insurance verified before a vehicle is collected, and vehicle owners carry a zero deductible on covered damage.
Auction and dealer work asks for things ordinary shipping does not. We dispatch against lot numbers and release paperwork, match carriers to vehicle condition rather than to whoever is nearest, and handle inoperable and no-key units with the winch and forklift equipment they need.
For the full picture of how auction and dealership transport works, see our car auction and dealership transport guide.
Related Guides
IAA moves overlap with these guides:
- Copart Auto Auction Shipping
- Manheim Auction Transport
- Auction Car Transport Services
- Auction Winner Car Pickup
- Auction Preparation & Pickup
Need a vehicle moved? Get a free quote with our auto transport quote calculator or call a transport coordinator at (866) 607-8459.