Sell my broken car in East Kilbride

If your car will not start, has a warning light the garage wants a fortune to fix, or has just failed its MOT, you can sell it to us exactly as it is. Send the registration and a plain description of the fault, and we reply with a firm price. There is nothing to repair first and no charge for collection.

The car is collected from East Kilbride on a recovery vehicle, so it never needs to move under its own power. Payment is by bank transfer to an account in your name. As a rule, the cars we buy go to a licensed Authorised Treatment Facility, which issues the Certificate of Destruction and notifies the DVLA when a car is scrapped.

East Kilbride is about 115 miles from our Fort William base, and we have no depot in South Lanarkshire. Collections here share scheduled runs with Glasgow and the rest of Lanarkshire, and the date is agreed when you accept the price. Until then the car can stay where it is, whether that is at home or at work. Postcodes, districts and how collection runs in East Kilbride are on our local page.

What to tell us about the fault

The price for a broken car depends on what is wrong, so the description matters more than it does for a plain scrap car. Start with the basics: does the engine turn over, does it start and cut out, or is it completely dead? List the warning lights on the dashboard. If a garage has looked at it, pass on what they found, whether that is fault codes, an MOT failure sheet or a repair estimate. Tell us whether the car rolls, steers and brakes, because that affects loading. Mention anything already replaced or removed. With that information we can give you one firm figure, and it is the figure you are paid if the car matches your description.

When selling a broken car makes more sense than fixing it

Start with two numbers: the repair estimate, and what the car would realistically sell for once fixed. If the first is close to the second, the repair is hard to justify, especially on an older car where another fault may follow. Add the cost of an MOT retest and the time spent advertising a car that has just been repaired. Then compare that with selling it as it is: one firm price, no outlay and a free collection from East Kilbride. There is no right answer for every car. A low-mileage car with a single, well-understood fault may be worth fixing. A tired car with a failed gearbox and rust on the sills usually is not.

Collection day for a broken car

Once you accept the price and a date is agreed, there is little to do. Make sure someone can meet the driver with photo ID, any keys you have and the V5C if you have it, or tell us in advance if that is a problem. Empty the car, including the boot and any spare wheel well. If the battery is flat and the car has an electric handbrake or an automatic gearbox, say so, because those cars can be harder to move without power. The driver compares the car with your description, sees your ID, then loads it on the recovery vehicle with any keys and paperwork. Payment is by bank transfer to an account in your name once those checks are done, and as a rule, cars we buy go on to a licensed treatment facility.

Read our full guide to selling a broken car, see the three steps from reg to payment, or start a quote.