Why scrap car prices go up and down
2 Sept 2026 · 2 min read · by the Motorspot team
The price a scrap yard can pay for a car follows the world price of steel, with a lag. What moves it, how far it moves, and whether it is worth waiting for a better month.
The price we can pay for a car is not something we decide in isolation. It is set, week by week, by what the shredder and the metal merchants are paying us, and that follows the international steel market.
The chain
A scrapped car becomes, mostly, shredded steel. That steel is sold to mills as raw material for new steel, and its price tracks the price of steel generally — which depends on construction and manufacturing demand around the world, energy costs, shipping, and what China is doing. When steel is in demand, scrap prices rise; when mills slow down, scrap prices fall. There is usually a lag of a few weeks between a move in the market and a move in what yards can pay.
How far it moves
Over the last decade the price of shredded scrap in the UK has swung between roughly £100 and £350 a tonne. For a typical 1,300 kg car that is the difference between about £130 and £450 before anything else is added. Most of the time it sits somewhere in the middle and moves by £10–£30 a tonne in a month.
What does not change with the market
The value of the catalytic converter follows a different market — platinum, palladium and rhodium — and can move independently. The premium for a running, complete car over a non-runner is about recovery cost and stays fairly constant. And the collection charge, where there is one, is about distance and fuel.
Should I wait for a better price?
Rarely worth it. Nobody can predict the market a month ahead, and a car that is sitting is deteriorating, costing tax or insurance, or taking up a drive. A £20 improvement in the scrap price is quickly eaten by a month's insurance. If you have decided to scrap it, scrap it.
The exception is a car you are keeping anyway — a project, a second car you are not sure about. If it is declared SORN and costing nothing, there is no harm in checking the price every few months.
How our price is set
Our base rate per tonne is updated as the market moves, and every quote is calculated from that rate on the day. That is why we quote live rather than publishing a list, and why a quote is valid for a set number of days rather than indefinitely. You can see today's typical prices and get the exact figure for your car by registration.