If your car is at a repair shop with an unpaid bill, you usually can't sell it until you pay. Texas law lets a shop that repaired a vehicle keep it until the repair bill is paid (Tex. Prop. Code §70.001). If the bill stays unpaid, the shop can follow a notice process and, after the waiting period, sell the car at a public sale to cover the charges (§70.006). So settle the bill, or agree on a payoff plan, before you line up offers.
You might think the car is yours, so you can take it. But Texas gives repair shops a "worker's lien." Under §70.001, a worker who repairs a vehicle may keep it until either:
The lien ends when the shop gets good payment or gives the car back. One catch: if you pay with a check that bounces or a card payment you stop, the law says the lien keeps going and the shop can take the car back, as long as you signed a separate notice saying the car could be repossessed (§70.001(b) and (c)).
A shop that is only storing the car, not repairing it, can also have a lien for the storage and towing charges under §70.003(c).
The shop can't just keep the car forever or sell it the next day. Section 70.006 sets out steps:
If you still owe on a car loan, your lender gets that notice too. The law also says a shop that leaves out required details in its notice to a lender can lose priority to the lender's lien (§70.006(b-2)).
If your bill is in dispute, talk to the shop first. This article is general information, not legal advice. For a dispute you can't settle, a Texas attorney can tell you how the law applies to your case.
Paying a repair bill on a car you plan to sell can feel like throwing good money after bad. Comparing several offers helps you see what the car is really worth before you decide how much repair makes sense. How competing offers work explains how local dealerships bid on the same car, and selling a car with a loan payoff covers what happens if you still owe.
Only if you and the dealer agree to it and the shop is paid. The shop's lien stays until it's paid or it gives up possession, so the bill has to be settled before the car leaves.
The worker's lien comes from the shop keeping the car, not from a title record. Your title still shows any lender. A shop that wants to sell the car must notify the lenders listed on the title.
A Texas repair shop can keep your car until the bill is paid, and after notice and a 31-day window it can sell the car at a public sale. Settle the bill first, then get the car appraised.
Want to know what your car is worth before you decide? Get competing offers. It's free to sellers, first responses typically come the same day (not guaranteed), and offers are confirmed after a physical appraisal.