What Happens to a Scrapped Car?

Once your car is collected by a licensed Authorised Treatment Facility (ATF), it enters a tightly regulated process. Around 80% of it will be recycled. Here is exactly what happens, step by step.

Step by step: what the ATF does

1. Vehicle acceptance and identity check. The ATF records the vehicle registration, VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) and the identity of the person presenting the car. This is a legal requirement under the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013. A receipt is issued confirming the transaction.
2. DVLA notification. The ATF notifies the DVLA that the vehicle has been received for destruction. You are removed as the registered keeper from this point. The ATF handles this paperwork on your behalf.
3. Depollution. Before any dismantling begins, the car is placed in a dedicated depollution bay. Trained operatives drain all hazardous fluids: engine oil, coolant, brake fluid, power steering fluid, transmission fluid and fuel. The catalytic converter is removed and set aside. The battery is removed and sent for specialist recycling. Airbags and seat belt pre-tensioners may be deployed or removed depending on ATF procedure. Tyres are removed for separate recycling.
4. Component recovery. Usable parts may be removed and sold as second-hand spares before the shell goes to the shredder. This is more common at facilities that run a parts operation alongside their ATF licence. Catalytic converters are sent to a precious metal reclaimer who extracts the platinum, palladium and rhodium.
5. Flattening or crushing. The depolluted shell is crushed flat or baled, reducing its volume for transport. This makes it easier to move to a shredding facility.
6. Shredding. The crushed vehicle is fed into a large industrial shredder (also called a hammermill), which reduces it to fist-sized fragments in seconds. The output is a mix of ferrous metal, non-ferrous metal, plastic, rubber, foam and glass, known collectively as automotive shredder residue (ASR).
7. Metal separation. The shredded material passes through a series of magnets and eddy current separators. Ferrous metals (steel and iron) are pulled out by magnets and sold to steel mills. Non-ferrous metals (aluminium from engine blocks and wheels, copper from wiring looms) are separated by eddy current and sold separately at a higher price per tonne.
8. ASR disposal. The remaining shredder residue, which includes plastics, foam and rubber, was historically sent to landfill. Modern ATFs increasingly process ASR through further sorting to recover additional materials, and some is converted to refuse-derived fuel (RDF). EU End-of-Life Vehicle (ELV) regulations set recovery targets that drive this.
9. Certificate of Destruction issued. Once the vehicle has been accepted for treatment, the ATF issues a Certificate of Destruction (CoD). This is sent to you by post within seven days and confirms the vehicle has been legally disposed of. The DVLA records the CoD and closes the vehicle record. From this point you have no further legal responsibility for the car.

What gets recycled and what does not

The vast majority of a car can be recovered or recycled:

• Steel (roughly 70% of vehicle weight) is melted down and recast into new steel products. UK-scrapped steel often goes to electric arc furnaces in the UK or is exported to mills in Europe and Asia.
• Aluminium from engine blocks, gearboxes, alloy wheels and body panels is separated and sold to secondary aluminium smelters. Aluminium has high value as scrap because remelting it uses around 95% less energy than producing primary aluminium.
• Copper wiring looms are separated and sold to copper recyclers. A typical modern car contains around 1 to 1.5 kg of copper.
• Catalytic converter precious metals (platinum, palladium, rhodium) are recovered by specialist refiners.
• Tyres are shredded into crumb rubber used in playground surfaces, athletics tracks and road construction.
• Glass is separated and sent to glass recyclers.
• Plastics are the most problematic component. Most are currently sent to waste-to-energy plants rather than mechanical recycling, though this is improving.

Is scrapping a car environmentally better than keeping it?

For a high-emission older vehicle, replacing it with a newer, cleaner car can be net positive for the environment over time, particularly when you consider that the steel recycled from your old car directly displaces primary steel production. Producing one tonne of steel from recycled scrap uses around 74% less energy and produces 58% fewer CO2 emissions than producing it from iron ore.

The licensed ATF system in the UK exists specifically to prevent hazardous fluids and materials from reaching landfill or waterways. An unlicensed or fly-tipped car disposal bypasses all of this.

Frequently asked questions

Can I watch my car being scrapped?

Most ATFs do not allow members of the public into the depollution or shredding areas for health and safety reasons. If you want peace of mind, ask for written confirmation of the vehicle's acceptance and wait for the Certificate of Destruction.

How long does the scrapping process take?

Depollution typically takes 30 to 60 minutes. Shredding happens in batches and your specific car may sit on site for days or weeks before being shredded, depending on the facility's throughput. The CoD is issued based on vehicle acceptance, not the physical shredding date.

What if the ATF does not send my Certificate of Destruction?

Licensed ATFs are legally required to issue the CoD within seven days. If you have not received it within ten days, contact the ATF directly with your receipt. You can also check the vehicle's status using the DVLA's free online vehicle enquiry service at gov.uk using the registration number.

Will parts from my car be sold on?

Possibly, yes. Many ATFs run a combined operation where reusable parts are removed and resold before the shell is shredded. This is legal and common. It does not affect your CoD or change the scrap price you were offered, as the offer is based on the vehicle as a whole unit.