Scrap car insights
The cars Britain scraps, and what their owners were paid
Every figure on this page comes from 11,839 cars collected and paid for through our network between October 2025 and September 2026. Real collections, not quotes, counted once each.
Cars collected
11,839
October 2025 to September 2026
Typical price paid
£228
half between £195 and £264
Typical age
17 years
from the year it was made to the year it went
Typical weight
1,300 kg
about £180 a tonne
What stands out
- Vauxhall and Ford between them made up 37% of every car, more than one in three. These are the cars that filled British roads in the late 2000s, and they are now reaching the end of their lives.
- The single most scrapped model was the Vauxhall Astra, 5.7% of the total, and its owners were typically paid £231.
- The most common age at scrapping was 15 to 19 years, with 59% of all cars, while fewer than one in a hundred was under 10.
- Age costs money, but less than people expect: a car of 10 to 14 years fetched £29 more than one of 20 or older, because the weight of metal matters more than the year.
- The busiest month was Aug 2026, with 1,317 cars, and the quietest Nov 2025, with 561.
The makes scrapped most
Share of every car collected, and the price its owner was typically paid.
How old they were
Age when collected, and the typical price at each age.
The oldest car on the list was made in 1978. Even at that age it went to a licensed yard and its owner got a Certificate of Destruction like everyone else.
The models scrapped most
Model families, so every engine and trim of a Focus counts as a Focus. Tap a model for its own page of prices.
| # | Model | Share of all cars | Typical paid | Typical age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vauxhall Astra | 5.7% | £231 | 16 yrs |
| 2 | Ford Focus | 5.4% | £230 | 17 yrs |
| 3 | Vauxhall Corsa | 4.8% | £195 | 16 yrs |
| 4 | Ford Fiesta | 4.6% | £195 | 18 yrs |
| 5 | Ford Mondeo | 2.5% | £271 | 16 yrs |
| 6 | Renault Clio | 2.3% | £187 | 17 yrs |
| 7 | Vauxhall Insignia | 2.3% | £277 | 14 yrs |
| 8 | Peugeot 207 | 2.2% | £224 | 17 yrs |
| 9 | Vauxhall Zafira | 2.2% | £263 | 16 yrs |
| 10 | MINI Hatch (One / Cooper) | 2.0% | £201 | 19 yrs |
| 11 | Volkswagen Golf | 2.0% | £234 | 18 yrs |
| 12 | Volkswagen Polo | 1.7% | £203 | 20 yrs |
| 13 | Honda Civic | 1.4% | £230 | 19 yrs |
| 14 | Citroën C4 and C4 Picasso | 1.3% | £245 | 16 yrs |
| 15 | Nissan Qashqai | 1.3% | £255 | 16 yrs |
Through the year
Cars collected each month, with the typical price paid in that month.
| Month | Oct 2025 | Nov 2025 | Dec 2025 | Jan 2026 | Feb 2026 | Mar 2026 | Apr 2026 | May 2026 | Jun 2026 | Jul 2026 | Aug 2026 | Sept 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cars | 820 | 561 | 1,163 | 852 | 805 | 828 | 1,080 | 1,272 | 1,120 | 994 | 1,317 | 1,027 |
| Paid | £221 | £215 | £231 | £225 | £222 | £222 | £228 | £231 | £232 | £231 | £229 | £228 |
Where these numbers come from
The list is every car a customer booked with us that a licensed yard on the network collected and paid for, from October 2025 to September 2026, with figures taken from our records up to 8 October 2026. The price is what the owner received, after any change agreed on the day. Cars bought at auction and regular trade sellers are left out, so the figures describe private owners. Typical means the median: half of the cars were paid more and half less. A make, model or age group with fewer than 30 cars shows no price. The figures are national; for prices by region and by size, see the monthly price index.
Quoting these figures? You’re welcome to, with a link to this page. Source: Scrap My Car Online scrap car insights, October 2025 to September 2026, scrapmycaronline.co.uk/scrap-car-insights
Is your car one of them?
Enter the registration and postcode for a price from the licensed yards that cover your area. It takes about a minute.