A common UK online search amongst those looking to dispose of the end of life vehicle is based around what typical prices scrap cars are selling for. However an accurate prediction may be not be that forthcoming let’s try to explain why.
There Are No Trade Books
Anyone who has sold their vehicle to a local garage or in part exchange for a newer one, would have noticed the sales person using a trade book such as “Glasses” to argue the true trade in value of their vehicle. Companies like Glasses study the trade in prices across the UK for most makes and models and publish their findings once a month. Unfortunately no trade books exist for vehicles over a certain age (there are guides for classic cars) and when the vehicles condition becomes uneconomical to repair. So that means each and every business will make its own prediction to what your vehicle is worth..
Crushed Or Dismantled For Parts?
Every normal vehicle will be crushed for its metal value, but the question is does this happen straight away or is there a period of time in between where the business, let’s call it a auto yard, strips the vehicle down, and re-sells the parts that still have some life in them, to be fitted to other cars, still running. Or is it a scrap merchant only relying on the scrap metal price only.
There is a difference here. An auto yard, has the potential to make extra profit selling its parts, which are worth more than the weight in metal itself. So a quote from a breaker yard should in theory be more valuable than just a scrap yard dealing in metal only.
Unfortunately even this realization can be too simplistic. Let’s say the auto yard you are dealing with has 4 models exactly the same already in stock. It is then that your vehicle stops being looked at as an asset, but more as overstock. And as these yards sometimes only purge their stock once a year (unlike larger scrap yards who do this regularly) , your vehicle could be seen as dead stock, where there is only a payback later in the year.
Operating Space
Breaker yards are business like everyone, else and picking and choosing what stock comes into the yard, in terms of allocating space can make a difference to their bottom line.
If there is only space for 100 cars, then it could make sense to try and have 100 different vehicles, to give more choice and options to their customers. Having many cars as just duplicates, can affect the money and profit they make. Again clearly if your vehicle is one they already have in stock, then the price may be adjusted to suit.
