I gathered 15 facts about Insurance Auto Auction (IAAI) for educational purposes and I am not affiliated with the company in any way. The post is designed to introduce the key features and inform other valuable information on IAAI. A major part of the information was collected from IAA’s official website.
If you have never heard about IAAI, it is one of the leading American car auction companies that sell mostly total loss vehicles from insurance companies. Apart from the salvage vehicles, IAAI also sells vehicles that have clean and rebuilt titles. A majority of the clean title cars come from dealerships, rental companies, loan companies, and charities.
Now, let’s learn some facts about IAA that you may have not known before.
IAAI has over 150 facilities across the United States and Canada.
Each of those facilities is conveniently located near large cities so insurance companies from those area can bring their wrecked vehicles to their facility.
Their locations are convenient for buyers as well. Because potential buyers can visit their facilities to participate in their live auctions. Also, online buyers can come there to check vehicles before the auction date.
IAAI’s top competitor is Copart.
IAA and Copart are competing with each other. To attract both sellers and buyers to their auctions, both of these companies are coming up with innovative ideas.
In general, the competition between these two giants is benefitting both buyers and sellers as their competition results in better customer service and technological innovations.
By using IAA’s mobile app or webpage, buyers can watch the interior and exterior of listed vehicles with a 360-degree view.
I think this is one of the key functions that give IAAI a competitive edge. By using its 360-view feature, buyers will detect most of the flaws and details within the interior and exterior of a vehicle.
Concisely, this is a great tool that improves the transparency of the company and helps buyers to bid on cars confidently. To use their 360-view feature, you just need to select any vehicle from their list and click on the 360-sign placed at the bottom of each picture.
IAA also offers live auctions in their facility.
In the beginning, IAA started as a live auction company. Since people got accustomed to using online platforms, the company also introduced an online platform where buyers can bid on any vehicle using their mobile devices regardless of their geographic locations.
However, IAA did not depart their old-style live auctioning method, which I think is great. I enjoy their live auctions because it creates a social environment by bringing like-minded people together. I also find the voices of the live auctioneers very pleasing, which are amazingly fast and fun to listen to.
You can buy some vehicles instantly on IAA.
IAA’s “Buy Now” option is a great way to buy and sell a vehicle without waiting for the next auction date. IAAI allows a seller to put the “Buy Now” feature if the vehicle does not sell in its first run.
IAA has it is own market value estimation tool.
Their tool is called “IAA Market Value”. It allows sellers to calculate the estimated value of their vehicle before the auctions. The tool utilizes the data accumulated from the previous auctions. To use that, sellers should access it through CSAToday.
IAA buyers can estimate their expenses using IAA Cost Calculator.
IAA Cost Calculator is a great tool to get a general idea of your estimated costs. The tool requires you to input your bid amount and your zip code. The bid amount is a crucial component because IAA has fee brackets for each bid amount. Your zip code is essential to calculate your transportation costs.
IAA offers six types of auctions.
Each one of those types has distinctive differences. Those auctions types are consisting of IAA Live&Online, IAA Timed Auctions, IAA Buy Now, IAA Online Exclusive, IAA Virtual Auctions, and IAA Screen Sale. You may get full information about each of them here.
IAAI was founded in 1982.
Since that date, IAAI is steadily growing and expanding its facilities across the US.
IAA partners with hundreds of charities and help them to sell their donated vehicles.
This means IAA also sells donation vehicles that are mostly free from damages. Some people assume that IAA sells only wrecked vehicles, however, this information is somewhat incorrect.
Although IAA’s inventory mostly consists of totaled vehicles, they sell undamaged cars too. When charities need to sell their donated vehicles, they call IAAI. The company usually comes and picks up the vehicles and auctions them off for charities for free.
IAAI helps individuals to sell used vehicles.
In other words, IAA auctions consigned vehicles. In my opinion, it is beneficial for people who do not have time to sell their vehicles themselves. When an owner of a vehicle fills out an online form or calls IAA representatives, IAA manages transportation for pickup.
Sellers may bring their cars themselves and drop them off at one of IAA’s nearby locations. On the auction day, IAA offers those vehicles to thousands of potential buyers from all over the world. If the vehicle sells, IAA usually pays the owner after three business days.
To bid on auctions at IAA, a buyer should be over the age of 18 and be a registered member.
Used car dealers, rebuilders, and exporters are the ones that can bid on the majority of the IAA vehicles. However, some auctions are also open to the public. Anyone can become a registered member by signing up on their website and submitting the required documents such as IDs.
Even if you are the highest bidder on IAA, you are not guaranteed to get that vehicle.
It is because IAA has to get confirmation from a seller before selling it. If the seller thinks that the highest bid is not enough for the car, he or she may decline the bids and relist the vehicle for the next auction date.
In some cases, sellers may submit an offer to negotiate a deal with the highest bidder. So, every time you see an “award pending” sign next to the car you won, that means a seller is thinking about whether to sell it or not for that price.
There is an IAAI buyer app that is specifically designed for online buyers and people can download it from Play Store.
The app is very convenient for those who are constantly traveling or does not have access to a PC. As long as you have an internet connection, a stable smartphone, and a current IAA account, you are good to bid on any vehicle regardless of your location.
Even non-registered users can use the IAAI buyer app to get a general idea about the vehicle they sell.
Once you are a winner at IAA auctions, you have two business days (excluding auction day) to pay and four business days to collect your vehicle.
According to the IAA website, the day limits may vary depending on the branches. For instance, if a branch has a yard with limited spots, it may request buyers to collect their vehicles sooner.
When a buyer fails to pay or collect the vehicle on time, IAA charges the late fees. You may check their late fees on their Auction Rules page.
I hope these 15 Facts about Insurance Auto Auctions Inc. (IAAI) will help you to understand the company and decide whether to use it or not.
If you have any unanswered questions after reading this post, you may refer to IAA’s FAQ.
