Salvage vehicles - Form 1

Salvage vehicles are vehicles that have been damaged beyond economical repair due to collision, natural disaster, accident, trespass or other occurrence as determined by a licensing authority or a licensed insurance provider.

All U.S. brand information on imported vehicles is acquired by RIV as part of the registration process. Vehicles in this category will have U.S. titles indicating the salvage status or brand. This information is verified by RIV through U.S. databases, and the salvage brand will be made available to all provincial and territorial licensing jurisdictions in Canada through the Interprovincial Records Exchange (IRE). A salvage status on a vehicle may severely limit your ability to get the vehicle licensed and insured in Canada. You should contact your jurisdictional licensing authority for more information.

Salvage or rebuilt salvage vehicles can be licensed in Canada provided the original damage was not flood-related and the vehicle is admissible under Transport Canada’s List of Vehicles Admissible from the United States. All licensing jurisdictions in Canada require a second rigorous structural integrity inspection for U.S. salvage vehicles to verify that the necessary repairs have been done to make the vehicle road safe.

Salvage or rebuilt salvage vehicles can also be imported into Canada as parts-only vehicles through a Vehicle Imported for Parts Form Form 3 regardless of the source of the damage. However, once a vehicle has entered Canada on Form 3, it can never be licensed in Canada.

Parts vehicles – Form 3

Parts vehicles are imported into Canada for the sole purpose of being disassembled and used for parts. The “disassembly for parts” or “to be dismantled for parts” designation as it appears on the Vehicle Imported for Parts Form – Form 3, is established either by the existing branding on the vehicle’s U.S. title or it is voluntarily declared by the importer when the vehicle is brought into Canada.

U.S. vehicles that are imported for parts enter Canada using a Vehicle Imported for Parts Form Form 3 at the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) office where they cross the border.

All U.S. brand information on imported vehicles is acquired by RIV as part of the registration process. Once a vehicle is declared for parts on a Form 3 or designated as a parts-only vehicle through a vehicle title history search, it is given a non-repairable status. That status cannot be reversed and the vehicle can never be licensed in Canada. The Registrar of Imported Vehicles (RIV) makes all vehicle status and brands available to every licensing jurisdiction in Canada through the Interprovincial Records Exchange (IRE).

Title history searches

RIV recommends that importers conduct a complete title history search on a vehicle before purchase, in order to see all brands assigned to that vehicle by U.S. licensing jurisdictions.

The following companies provide title histories for a fee:

CARFAX©

VinAudit™