Copart storage fees exist for one reason: to get sold cars off the yard fast. They do their job well — a few days of hesitation routinely costs more than the entire transport. Here is what the fees actually are, how the free window really works (it's sneakier than it sounds), and the simple sequence that reliably gets you to $0 in storage.
How much are Copart storage fees?
Most Copart yards charge somewhere between $40 and $85 per day once your free storage window closes, with big-metro yards at the top of that range. There is no single national rate — each yard sets its own, and you can see yours in your member account's fee schedule or by calling the yard before you bid.
| When | What it costs |
|---|---|
| Sale day → business day 3 | Payment due in full (counting sale day). Miss it: $50 late fee per vehicle. |
| Payment clears | Free storage window starts — about 3 business days at most yards, up to 5 at some. |
| Free window ends | Daily storage begins: typically $40–$85/day, billed every calendar day — weekends and holidays included. |
| Day 8 (if never paid) | Copart can relist the car and charge a relist fee of 10% of the sale price. |
Run the math on a $50/day yard: a car that sits one week past its window burns $350 — often more than shipping it a few hundred miles would have cost in the first place.
How does the free storage window actually work?
The free window starts when your payment clears, not when you send it — and that distinction is where most surprise storage bills come from. A wire transfer usually clears the same or next business day. A cashier's check or CashierPay can take two to three business days — pay by check on a Friday and your free window may not even open until the middle of the next week, while the calendar keeps moving.
The second trap is the weekend asymmetry: weekends and holidays don't count toward your free window, but they absolutely get billed once the window has closed. A window that ends on a Friday means Saturday and Sunday are charged at full rate before you've had another business day to react.
How do you avoid Copart storage fees entirely?
Pay fast by wire, book transport the same day, and hand over your Gate Pass PIN immediately — that sequence, started early in the week, gets almost every car out inside the free window.
- Pay by wire, early in the week. Wires clear fastest, and a Monday–Tuesday start keeps the whole pickup inside business days instead of straddling a billed weekend.
- Book transport the day you pay. A dispatched truck typically reaches the yard within one to three business days — that's your whole free window. The full pickup process is in our step-by-step Copart shipping guide, and a free quote takes about two minutes.
- Send the Gate Pass PIN with the booking. Copart requires the PIN (from your win email or the Payments Due page) plus the lot number before a carrier can even schedule a pickup appointment. Every hour the PIN sits in your inbox is an hour the truck can't book.
- Mind the loading hours. Yards load roughly 8 AM to late afternoon, Monday–Friday. A truck that shows up Friday at 4:40 PM comes back Monday — with the weekend billed in between.
- Declare a non-runner upfront. The wrong truck at the gate means a rescheduled pickup and more storage days. If the car doesn't run, say so when you book, and the right equipment shows up once.
Frequently asked questions
Do weekends count against Copart's free storage days?
They don't count toward the free window — that's measured in business days — but once the window has expired, storage is charged every calendar day, weekends and holidays included. The window is friendly; the meter is not.
Can Copart storage fees be waived?
Occasionally a yard will show grace over a genuine mix-up, but it's entirely at the location's discretion and nothing to plan around. The reliable "waiver" is picking the car up inside the free window — which is very doable with a same-day transport booking.
Where do I find my yard's exact daily rate?
Check the fee schedule in your Copart member account, or call the yard directly — every yard's phone number and hours are listed on our Copart location pages. Rates are set per location, so don't assume your last yard's rate applies to the next one.
Is storage the only fee if I'm slow?
No. Miss the three-business-day payment deadline and there's a $50 late-payment fee per vehicle; leave it unpaid to around day eight and Copart can relist the car and charge 10% of the sale price. Storage is just the fee that keeps growing quietly in the background.