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What happens to scrapped cars?

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Crushed cars

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8 August 2014

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Any fuel, oil, coolant, screen fluid and brake fluid is removed in the de-pollution process

This content was provided on behalf of Onesure Insurance

What’s My Car Worth?

The first thing you will want to consider when getting rid of your car is if it is actually worth anything.

You can use The Claims Protection Agency Ltd website in order to give you an idea of the value of your car.

If, after that, you decide that it is not worth the agro of trying to sell it, or it’s not worth anything at all, then you need to look for a reputable local firm that will scrap it on your behalf.

It is worth noting at this point that as of October 2013 it is illegal for scrappers to pay you cash for your car – if someone does offer this refuse it and use a different company.

There were over 32 million registered cars in Britain in 2013 and just under 2 million of these vehicles reach the end of their life every year. Of these around 600,000 are sent to be scrapped, but what happens when you wave goodbye to your car?

What Happens In The Process?

In 2003 a new law was passed that meant that any car reaching the end of its road going life must be de-polluted before it goes on to be recycled, this was known as the End of Life Vehicle Act (ELV).

Your car will be sent to an approved treatment facility where they remove any remaining fuel, oil, coolant, screen fluid and brake fluid.

Once this has been completed it is now able to be returned to the scrap site and several pieces are then removed including the battery for specialist recycling, the air bags are taken out and the tyres are removed.

All hazardous materials like the mercury switches can now be removed and safely disposed of.

The final part of the process involves taking off any remaining glass which can be sent for recycling along with the bumpers and any large remaining plastic items – anything that can’t be recycled is disposed of.

After all of this the vehicle can then be processed further by a conventional shredder where it is crushed and reduced in size.

While the above is true for the majority of cars that are scrapped in the UK it may not always be carried out in that exact order depending on the condition that it is in when you hand it over.

Once you have scrapped your car though you need to inform the DVLA; to do this you can either gain a DVLA Certificate of Destruction from the scrappers and sign the car over to them via your log book, or you can complete the relevant part of the V5 to be sent directly to the DVLA.

You can also claim back any remaining whole months of road tax on the car too.

 

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