User:Bluecycle

Over the last few years, the introduction of new regulations has had a significant impact on the UK motor salvage industry. Regulations including The End of Life Vehicles Directive (ELV) and Motor Salvage Operator licence aim to ensure salvage is disposed of in a way that limits the impact on the environment and minimises dangers to the public.

One of the most heavily regulated areas is the treatment of 'Category B' salvage vehicles. These are vehicles that can only be broken for parts and never be returned to the road, due to being either severely damaged in accidents, or by fire or flood. Over the last five years, in excess of 640,000 Category B vehicles have been added to the Association of British Insurers (ABI) MIAFTR database (Motor Insurance Anti Fraud and Theft Register)– an average of 128,000 each year. This equates to around 7% of the total number of vehicles scrapped each year.

The ABI’s Code of Practice for Motor Salvage makes it very clear that these vehicles should be treated as ELVs. They must therefore be dismantled and disposed of in accordance with ELV legislation by operators who are an Authorised Treatment Facility for End of Life Vehicles. Under other legislation they should also hold a Waste Carrier licence, a Motor Salvage Operator licence and Hazardous Waste Registration.

The latest guidelines on Hazardous Waste issued by The Environment Agency highlight that ELVs are to be treated as hazardous waste until they are de-polluted. Any operator accepting this type of waste must have suitable site licenses. They have a duty of care to store the vehicles on an impermeable surface with sealed drainage, only pass the waste to someone authorised to deal with it and issue a waste transfer note to any carrier.

Currently there are approximately 1,250 operators that fit within these parameters across the United Kingdom. They are inspected by the Environment Agency to ensure compliance and also bear the increased costs of adhering to the various regulations. Actual costs involved will be very varied and are influenced by the current condition of the yard, and could include drainage, buildings, concrete, equipment and training. As an example, basic de-pollution equipment can be obtained for as little as £1,500 or a full size de-pollution rig could approach £40,000.

These operators are also responsible for completing the DVLA’s Certificate of Destruction (CoD) online. Once this certificate is issued, the vehicle’s record is closed and a V5 cannot be issued, reducing fraud, as the vehicle’s identity cannot be cloned and it can’t be put back on the road. These certificates are also important as the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (formerly DTI) uses them to compile their ELV statistics for the EU.