When a vehicle is considered a total loss, the insurance company pays you the Actual Cash Value (ACV) of the vehicle at the time of the loss. They then retain the rights to the vehicle to recoup from the pay out to you.

So basically you are selling the vehicle to the insurance company when they pay you for a total loss. It is then up to the insurance company to determine the use of the vehicle. If the vehicle is in good working condition, they may be able to sell it to a reseller or auction off the vehicle to private dealers. If the vehicle is damaged they may choose to salvage the parts from the vehicle.

You can contact your insurance company for more information about the vehicle and to find out what they will do with the recovered vehicle.