Is it finally time for you to say farewell to your motor? No matter how sentimentally attached you’ve become to your car, sometimes the time just comes to get rid of it. Even if you’re sentimentally attached to your pride and joy, if it’s starting to crumble under old age or it’s had an accident which has turned it into nothing more than a pile of twisted metal, then it’s probably time to get rid.

Scrapping your car might seem like quite a difficult thing to do, but the truth is that if it’s done properly it’s a very quick procedure. As long as your car is in the correct condition to be scrapped, and you have all of the paperwork in order, it can be a pain-free experience.

Will I make money scrapping my car?

The price you may get for your will depend on the current market rate at the time that you come to scrap it. Like with most commodities, the prices of steel and aluminium fluctuate depending on the demand for them.

If you have a particularly rare or sought-after car, then a scrap company may look at dismantling your car and selling the individual parts before scrapping the rest of it. This however is quite rare, most companies will only accept the car to be completely scrapped.

Where do I scrap my car?

There are many places to scrap your car. And like with most things, you are more likely to get the best price if you shop around. There are numerous websites around that will get in touch with multiple scrapyards and offer their best prices for your car. You will receive your offer in advance so that you can decide whether or not you wish to accept it without proceeding any further.

When it comes to choosing the correct place to scrap your car, always look for an Authorised Treatment Facility (ATF), as these are the only places in the UK that are legally allowed to scrap vehicles. Such companies will ensure that the battery and other hazardous parts are disposed of in a safe way, complying with EU standards.

Scrap companies will now only pay you for your vehicle by cheque or bank transfer, as it is now illegal to offer cash for a scrapped vehicle. If you accept cash for your vehicle then there is no evidence of the transaction, which can have repercussions on you in the future when declaring to the DVLA that you are no longer the registered keeper of the vehicle.

Informing the DVLA

Once you have scrapped a vehicle you are no longer liable for the vehicle excise duty (car tax). However you will need to fill in and send your V5C from your logbook to the DVLA to let them know that this is the case. Once you have scrapped a car and sent this part of the log book off, you’ll receive a certificate of destruction from the scrap company. This is proof that the car has been scrapped and that you are no longer responsible for it. If you do not receive the certificate of destruction then you will need to chase this up with the scrap company, as there is an £80 fine if you cannot provide evidence of it.

As well as the money that you will receive from the scrap company for your car, you will also receive a refund of the remainder of your car tax from the DVLA. Don’t forget to contact your insurance company as well to either get the insurance transferred over to your new vehicle or get a refund from them. Following the above procedures will mean that you can quickly and easily scrap your car and get on with more important things.