If your car has been badly damaged, written of by your insurance company, or has come to the end of its useful life, then you might be wondering what to do next.
Thankfully, legislation in recent years to minimise the problem of abandoned cars means you no longer have to pay for your car to be scrapped, in fact an authorised vehicle scrapping facility may even take it off your hands and give you money back in return.
So, what happens when you scrap a car? Firstly, it’s important that you take your vehicle to an Authorised Treatment Facility (ATF), which is specially licensed to scrap cars and will ensure the correct procedures are followed in accordance with Environment Agency regulations.
They will also inform the DVLA when the car has been scrapped and you will receive a Certificate of Destruction (CoD) as proof that it has happened. (The CoD will mean you are no longer liable for any traffic penalties and vehicle tax).
Once they have taken your car the ATF will ensure that any dangerous or hazardous materials, such as the car battery, are removed and disposed of correctly and any reusable parts are salvaged.
Our responsibility
Any licensed facility should understand the importance of scrapping a car in the correct and environmentally friendly way.
That’s why, when you drop your car with us for scrapping, it will first go through the depollution process to remove any hazardous materials that are then correctly disposed of. All of the tyres are taken off and sent for retreading or recovery and items such as bumpers and glass are removed for specialist recycling.
It is only once the vehicle has completed the necessary depollution process and any recyclable parts removed, that it will be deemed safe to crush.
Our environmental policy
When it comes to scrapping a car, one of our main responsibilities is protecting the environment, by ensuring that any materials which could pollute the soil or water supply are disposed of correctly and don’t pose a risk.
Hence the removal of any switches, seat belt pre-tensioners, catalytic converters, airbags, oil filters and all of the vehicle’s fluids (oil/ coolant/ fuel etc) which are pumped into sealed tanks.
The scrap car is also connected to a depollution rig which will earth the vehicle and allow it to discharge any static.
Scrap your car with us
If you’re looking to scrap your car, it might be comforting to know that it will be in good hands when you leave it with us. Get in touch today to find out more about how you could scrap your car with us.