Will you haggle on collection?

Unlike some other scrap car buying services, the scrap yards you’re connected with through Car.co.uk will never haggle over the price of your car. A huge number of customers come to us because their friends and family have had a great experience using our service. We strive for outstanding customer care – and we’ll always make sure the price you’re offered is the price you receive.

Why do you inspect the car if you’re not going to haggle?

We ask our collection partners to inspect the car upon collection to make sure it was accurately described when we issued a price. Rather than produce an average quote, we’ll make sure you receive the highest possible price for the specific car you’re selling – and there are a number of things that can change that price slightly, including the engine size, trim level, fuel type, and any parts that may be missing. 

The inspection simply makes sure no errors have occurred relating to the make, model, or condition of the car.

What happens if the car isn’t as described?

We appreciate that not everyone’s a car fanatic – so we don’t expect you to be able to quote us the exact specification of your car! Our innovative way of working means we only require your car’s registration number to get the exact make, model, and year of manufacture.

Despite this, we do understand that mistakes sometimes occur – but don’t worry, if the car doesn’t match the description that our scrap partner based their quote on, they’ll simply provide another quote based on more accurate details. This way, you never have to worry about haggling – as you’ll always receive the best possible quote for your exact car.

Will I be offered a different ‘cash’ price?

Each of the scrap yards we work with meet strict government authorised treatment facility (ATF) standards – and a big part of this accreditation relies on them following the Scrap Metal Dealers Act (2013). This law dictates that payment for scrap (including scrap cars) can only be made by cheque or electronic transfer. As such, you’ll never be offered a different price based on a cash payment.

Some road-side traders and unauthorised scrap collectors will occasionally offer to buy your old or damaged car for cash – but, doing so is very risky and may be against the law. If you sell your scrap car for cash in this way, the trader you deal with won’t be able to provide the official paperwork you need – and this could result in you receiving fines or penalties for the car if the DVLA still consider you to be the legal owner; even for issues and offences that occur after the car is sold.

Other related FAQs

Looking for more related content to this? We’ve picked a selection of related topics that you may find helpful

You can get in touch with your insurance company and cancel your cover after your car has been collected. If you cancel your insurance before collection, you’ll be breaking the law if you drive the car on a public road. -

It’s illegal to sell a car with outstanding finance, so before you scrap a car you need to have paid off the outstanding finance amount. Technically, a car with outstanding finance is the lender’s property, not yours.

No. It’s important that your car is free of rubbish and personal belongings - as our scrap partners are not equipped to deal with anything other than the car.

ATF stands for ‘Authorised Treatment Facility’ - another name for a scrap yard, breaker’s yard or vehicle dismantler that meets with strict government guidelines relating to the handling processing of End of Live vehicles.

Yes, you can. Before your car is collected, you’ll need to ‘retain’ your registration with the DVLA; either online or through the post. Your registration will then be held on a retention certificate, ready to transfer to another car.

Scrapping your car can be the solution when repair or running costs are greater than your vehicle’s value. If your car has been written off, deemed unsafe or no longer in use, these are all additional reasons to scrap it.

Yes, our network of dismantlers can scrap vehicles that are registered in other countries. You’ll need to inform the governing body in the country that the car is from; usually by sending them the completed registration document.

Yes. Vehicle tax is no longer transferable from owner to owner – so, if you’re scrapping your car, we recommend that you get in touch with the DVLA soon after collection to reclaim any tax that may be owed.

If you’re entitled to any unused road tax when you scrap your car, you should get in touch with the DVLA to reclaim it. Since tax discs were phased out, this can no longer be done at a post office – so you’ll need to contact the DVLA directly, either on the phone, by post, or using their website.

Yes – it’s important that you inform the DVLA when you scrap your car, as you could be liable for any on-going charges relating to it if you don’t. The quick and easy way to inform the DVLA is by completing and returning section 9 (or section 4 on post-April 2019 documents) of the V5C log book form.