Valuation
Scrap car value calculator
What is my car worth for scrap? Its weight in metal, plus or minus what is bolted to it — and then, more than most people realise, which yards cover your postcode. Enter the registration and we look up the exact kerb weight, price it against what the licensed yards covering your district are paying today, and adjust for condition. The figure is for your car, in your area, and it is what the collecting yard pays on the day.
What the yards are paying
Live figures on 15 October 2026 for a typical example of each type in average condition — complete, with the catalytic converter, wheels and battery in place — in one representative postcode district. Your own district will differ. For scale: across the 27,900 cars collected through the network since February 2024, the middle price paid has been £236, on a middle rate of about £180 a tonne.
| Small hatchbacke.g. Ford Fiesta, Vauxhall Corsa | from £180 |
| Family hatchbacke.g. Ford Focus, VW Golf | from £230 |
| Saloon or estatee.g. Ford Mondeo, BMW 3 Series | from £260 |
| SUV or 4x4e.g. Nissan Qashqai, Land Rover Freelander | from £295 |
| Vane.g. Ford Transit, Vauxhall Vivaro | from £405 |
The five things that set a scrap value
1. Weight
Scrap metal is traded by the tonne, so everything starts from the kerb weight on the DVLA record. A Ford Fiesta is around 1,050 kg; a Land Rover Discovery is over 2,400 kg. That is why a big 4x4 nobody wants to run is worth twice a tidy little hatchback, whatever the mileage.
2. Today’s metal rate
Steel moves with world demand and scrap car prices follow it week by week. The yards on the network update their rates as the market moves, which is why the price is quoted live rather than printed on a list.
3. The catalytic converter
The platinum, palladium and rhodium inside a converter make it the most valuable single component on most cars. A car with its converter is worth more; a car where it has been cut out is worth less, and the form asks so that the price is right first time.
4. Completeness and condition
Engine, gearbox, wheels, battery, doors: each missing part takes weight and value off. Whether the car starts and rolls matters too, because a seized car takes longer to load. Accident damage on its own hardly moves a scrap price — bent panels weigh the same as straight ones.
5. Which yards cover your postcode
This is the one a single yard can never show you. Each licensed yard on the network sets its own rate for every district it will drive to, and the rates differ by more than most people expect — in the network’s own records the middle price paid runs from about £175 in the lowest-paying districts to around £270 in the best, for a similar mix of cars. Your postcode is part of the valuation, and the figure you see is the best rate any yard covering it will pay.
Scrap or salvage?
Not every unwanted car should be weighed in. If yours is under about ten years old, or has damage to one end but a good engine, a yard that breaks cars for parts may pay more than its weight in metal — and some of those yards are on the network. Read more on the damaged car page.
Common questions
Why do two postcodes get different prices for the same car?
Because different yards cover them. A district with three licensed yards within a short drive of a shredder is competed for and pays well; a district served by one yard a long haul away pays less. The calculator shows the best rate covering your district, so the difference is real money rather than a national average that is generous in some places and poor in others.
Why does the valuation ask about the catalytic converter?
It is the most valuable single part on most scrap cars. The platinum, palladium and rhodium inside are worth more than the rest of the steel on some models, so a car with the converter cut out is priced noticeably lower.
Does mileage matter?
Not for scrap. Mileage matters when a car is being resold; a car going for recycling is priced on weight and completeness. A 250,000-mile diesel estate is worth more as scrap than a 60,000-mile city car because it weighs more.
Will the price change on the day?
Only if the car is not as described — a missing converter, no engine, wheels gone. The collector checks and tells you before anything is loaded, and you can decline. If the car is as you said, the price is the price.
Could my car be worth more as salvage?
Sometimes: a newer car with damage to one end, or one with a sought-after engine, can be worth more to a breaker than to a shredder. Several yards on the network break cars for parts and price accordingly. Describe the car honestly in the notes and it reaches the right kind of yard.