Search for 'scrap my car for cash' and you will find plenty of 'cash for cars' adverts, but no scrap buyer in Great Britain can lawfully hand you notes. Paying cash for a scrap vehicle is illegal in England and Wales under the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013, and in Scotland under the Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2015, in force since 2016. You still get paid, just by bank transfer, which leaves a record that protects you as well as the buyer.
This guide explains the law, then walks through how scrapping a car actually works: getting a quote, the paperwork, collection, payment and what happens afterwards.
Why a scrap car buyer cannot legally pay cash
The Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013 came into force in England and Wales on 1 October 2013. It made it an offence for a scrap metal dealer, which includes any business that buys vehicles for scrap or salvage, to pay in cash. Payment has to be traceable: a non-transferable cheque or an electronic transfer into a bank account. The Act also requires dealers to hold a licence from their council and to record who they bought from.
Scotland followed with the Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2015, which amended the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 and ended cash payments for scrap metal from 2016. Scottish councils license metal dealers too, under what is called a metal dealer's licence. The aim on both sides of the border was the same: to stop stolen metal and stolen vehicles being turned into untraceable money.
So if a business offers you cash for your scrap car, it would be breaking the law to pay you that way, and you would have no paper trail if anything went wrong. Motor Salvage Group pays by bank transfer and asks to see your ID.
Step 1: get a quote
You need the registration number, the postcode where the car is, and an honest description: does it start and drive, is anything missing or damaged, do you have the V5C? A couple of photos are useful. Send those on WhatsApp and we reply with a price and confirm whether we can collect from your postcode.
The price depends on the weight of the vehicle, its make and model, its condition and whether anything is missing, the demand for its parts, the distance to collect it and how easy it is to reach, and that week's metal prices. Weight matters because a scrapped car ends up as recycled metal. Make, model and condition matter because a car with sound, sought-after parts can be worth more to a breaker than its metal alone. There is no collection charge: distance is one of the things that sets the price, so the figure we quote already allows for the journey.
Get more than one quote if you like, but compare like with like. Ask whether the figure is subject to inspection, whether anything comes off for a missing V5C or missing parts, and whether there is any charge for collection or admin.
Step 2: gather the paperwork
A buyer must be satisfied that you are entitled to sell the car. The V5C log book is the easiest way to show you are the registered keeper, although it is not proof of ownership on its own, and it carries the 11-digit reference number you use to tell the DVLA the car has gone. If it is lost, you can still scrap the car: have photo ID and something that links you to the vehicle, such as an insurance certificate, a purchase invoice or a tax or MOT reminder in your name.
If there is finance outstanding, the finance company still has an interest in the car and the agreement must be settled first. If the car is an insurance write-off that you still own, have the insurer's paperwork to hand. Our guide to selling a damaged or written-off car covers that in detail.
Step 3: prepare the car
Empty it of belongings and personal data, leave any keys you have with it, and do not remove parts. A quote assumes a complete car, and the price drop for a missing catalytic converter or battery can easily outweigh what the part is worth to you. A missing key does not stop a sale, but it can affect the price and which vehicle we send, so mention it when you ask for a price. If you have a private registration you want to keep, take it off through the DVLA and wait for the V778 retention document and the new V5C before the car is collected. The DVLA only allows this if the car can move under its own power, and it may inspect the car, so a non-runner may not qualify: check before you accept a price. Our checklist on what to do before you scrap a car goes through all of this.
Check where the car will wait. On a public road it must be taxed, insured and have a valid MOT until it is collected. If it is missing any of the three, keep it off the public road, on a driveway or in a garage, and declare it SORN. You do not need a valid MOT to scrap a car, and a SORN car can be scrapped.
Step 4: collection
Collections run on scheduled routes from our base in Fort William, so the collection date is agreed when you accept the price and depends on how far away you are. We send a recovery truck, so the car does not need to run. Once the driver has checked the car against your description and seen your ID and paperwork, you are paid by bank transfer to an account in your name.
Step 5: after the car has gone
Cars we buy for scrap go to a licensed Authorised Treatment Facility (ATF). When a car is scrapped, the ATF issues a Certificate of Destruction and notifies the DVLA; the certificate is the official record that you are no longer responsible for the car. Once the DVLA has the notification, any full months of remaining vehicle tax are refunded automatically. GOV.UK asks you to tell the DVLA yourself as well, and you can be fined if you do not: do it through the DVLA's online service with the 11-digit reference on your V5C and keep the yellow V5C/3 slip with your records, or fill in that yellow slip and post it to the DVLA. If you have no V5C, write to the DVLA instead with your name and address, the registration, make and model, the exact date of sale and the buyer's name and address.
Then contact your insurer to cancel or transfer the policy. Do this after the car has gone, not before.
Is scrapping the right option?
Scrapping is the simplest route for a car that does not run, has failed its MOT badly, or is worth less than the repair bill. It is not always the most valuable route, so consider the alternatives:
- Sell it privately. If the car runs and has a reasonable MOT, a private sale usually beats scrap value, but it takes time, and you will handle the viewings, the haggling and the DVLA paperwork yourself.
- Part-exchange it. A dealer may take an old car against a newer one. The allowance is often modest and only applies if you are buying from them.
- Sell it for its parts. A non-runner with a good engine, gearbox or body panels can be worth more broken for parts than weighed in as metal. Tell us what is good about the car when you ask for a quote, or read about selling a car for its parts value.
- Sell it as a non-runner. If the fault is known and the rest of the car is sound, see selling a broken car as it is.
- Donate it. Some UK charities run vehicle donation schemes that scrap or auction the car and keep the proceeds. You will not be paid, but it is a straightforward way to give.
How to spot a buyer you can trust
- They pay by bank transfer or another traceable method, and never offer cash.
- They send the car to an Authorised Treatment Facility and confirm that a Certificate of Destruction will be issued when it is scrapped.
- They hold a metal dealer's licence from their council (called a scrap metal dealer licence in England and Wales).
- They charge nothing for collection and tell you up front what could change the price on the day.
- They check your ID and paperwork. A buyer who does not care who they are buying from is not one you want.
How Motor Salvage Group handles it: payment by bank transfer, no charge for collecting from the areas we cover in Scotland and England, and licensed ATF partners that issue the Certificate of Destruction when a car is scrapped. When you are ready, ask for a price, or talk it through with us first.