It’s the end of the line – at least for your car. It’s broken-down, worn-out, and not worth repairing.
So you do your research, check the rules and regulations, and decide that the best thing today is recycle and scrap your car. You will get a little bit of money out of your vehicle, and you’ll be able to know you’ve recycled the raw materials in your car rather than consigned them to the rust heap.
Good for you! Before you can declare your car officially “gone,” there’s at least one small thing you need to do: inform the DVLA that your car is scrap.
Why do I need to notify the DVLA of a scrapped car?
The primary purpose of notifying the DVLA is to make sure you’re no longer responsible for the car. Without this step, you could be liable for road tax, or even parking or speeding tickets; the DVLA will still think you’re the owner of the car, so you will be the one they come calling to if something happens. There can also be fines, in certain cases, for failing to alert the DVLA about a scrapped car.
On the plus side, when you notify the DVLA that you’ve scrapped your car, you’ll be automatically refunded any months of road tax you’ve already paid for.
When and how to notify the DVLA
Notify the DVLA as soon as the car has been disposed of. This can be done by two methods. If you still have the most recent vehicle logbook (V5C), you can use the 11-digit reference number and notify the DVLA online here. This is the quickest and easiest method, but it is not unusual for the vehicle logbook to be missing.
When that happens, don’t panic! There is another way to keep the DVLA up-to-date, though it does involve a bit more work. Just notify the DVLA in writing, and be sure to include a few key bits of information – which facility scrapped the car, the car’s registration, etc. Not sure what to include? Don’t worry! We’ve prepared a simple template for you. Just fill it out, print it, and mail it to DVLA address included in the letter.
Scrapping a car is not a difficult process, but the job won’t be finished until you’ve notified the DVLA.
Download the DVLA notification sample letter here
Simply replace the items highlighted in bold with your own details.