Scrapping a vehicle — formally known as vehicle disposal at an Authorised Treatment Facility — triggers specific road tax obligations. Getting these right ensures you receive any refund owed and avoid ongoing liability for a vehicle you no longer own.
Authorised Treatment Facilities
An Authorised Treatment Facility (ATF) is a scrapyard licensed to handle end-of-life vehicles in an environmentally responsible way. ATFs must notify DVLA electronically when they take a vehicle for scrapping. This electronic notification ends the keeper's road tax liability and triggers a refund for any full months of remaining tax. Only ATFs can provide the official Certificate of Destruction.
Road Tax Refund When Scrapping
When an ATF notifies DVLA that a vehicle has been scrapped, DVLA processes a road tax refund automatically for any full months remaining on the tax period. The refund is calculated from the start of the month following the month in which the ATF notified DVLA. Refunds are sent to the registered keeper by cheque or BACS payment. Keep a record of the ATF reference number.
Non-ATF Disposal
If you sell a vehicle to a scrap dealer who is not an ATF, the electronic notification to DVLA may not happen. In this case, you must notify DVLA yourself using the "scrapped" section of your V5C. Failure to notify DVLA means you remain the registered keeper and continue to be liable for road tax — and any penalties — even though the vehicle no longer exists. Always use an ATF or complete the DVLA notification yourself.
Certificate of Destruction
The Certificate of Destruction is issued by the ATF when they take your vehicle. This document confirms the vehicle has been properly and legally scrapped in accordance with environmental regulations. While the Certificate of Destruction is not required to claim a road tax refund, it is important to keep for your records as evidence that the vehicle has been disposed of properly.
SORN and Scrapped Vehicles
Before scrapping a vehicle, ensure the road tax situation is clear. If the vehicle is still taxed, the ATF notification will trigger the refund automatically. If the vehicle is declared SORN, the ATF notification still ends the keeper's liability — but there is no refund for SORN months since those months were not paid. The SORN is automatically cancelled when DVLA receives the scrapping notification.
What About the Registration Number?
If you want to keep the vehicle's registration number before scrapping, you must apply to retain it before handing over the vehicle. Use the V317 form to get a retention certificate for the registration. Without this, the registration is removed from the vehicle and cannot be recovered once the vehicle has been destroyed. This is separate from the scrapping process — you must do the retention first.