Do You Need to SORN to Scrap a Car?

*This is a collaborative post 

Scrapping a car isn’t something you are likely to do every day, so if you do find yourself in the position of needing to send a vehicle to a scrap yard, it is essential that you know what to do. A SORN is one area that tends to cause a little bit of confusion, should you SORN a car before scrapping it or not? Well, the basic answer is, in most cases, no you do not need to SORN it, but there are important things to understand. 

Car With No SORN

If you want to scrap a car that does not have a SORN the good news is you are free to do so. You can legally drive it to the scrap yard assuming it still runs. Of course, you may be scrapping it because it is a non-runner in which case you will need to get it towed in which is also fine. You do need to ensure that you are working with an Authorised Treatment Facility, and they will be able to handle the paperwork for you moving forward. You need to complete the sections of the V5C and return these to DLVA to explain what you have done, and this automatically triggers cancellation of road tax direct debit. Of course, you should also inform your insurance company that you no longer have the vehicle. When the car is passed to scrap it is issued a Certificate of Destruction, and this is also sent to DVLA to match the paperwork you have posted. If you do not have the V5C, you need to write and tell them the details. 

Road Legal Car With Parts Missing

Now, the situation is a little different if you are planning to remove parts of the vehicle before scrapping it. Once you do this, you make the car unroadworthy, and you do need to declare a SORN on the vehicle before you make the changes. This might be because you want to try and sell parts for breaking, and that is fine as long as you follow the rules for declaring the vehicle off-road and indeed remove it from a public highway onto private land. 

Car With SORN

If you are going to remove parts and SORN a vehicle, or if you have already declared a SORN on the car you can still scrap it, you just need to take this into account. You will not be able to drive it to a scrap yard or tow it if it is not road legal. You will need to arrange transport that is legal (the vehicle will have to be trailered and not touching the road). Many scrap yards will be able to do this for you, and after that, you should follow the same process as before. You need to send off the V5C if you have it, or otherwise make DVLA aware that the vehicle was sent to scrap. The dealer will then complete their paperwork and issue the Certificate of Destruction.