End-of-Life Vehicle (ELV)

An end-of-life vehicle (ELV) is a car or light commercial vehicle (of less than 3.5 tonnes) which is due to be disposed of or scrapped.

You must dispose of an end-of-life vehicle using licensed authorised treatment facilities (ATFs, also called permitted scrapyards). This is because end of life vehicles contains hazardous materials that can damage the environment and pose a risk to public health if not disposed of safely. For example, vehicles contain lead acid batteries, lubricating oil, coolant, brake fluid, and catalytic convertors.

You are committing a criminal offence if you (or an authorised treatment facility) dispose of an end-of-life vehicle illegally.

EU Directive 2000/53/EC (as amended) sets out measures that Member States must put in place about collecting, storing, treating, dismantling, reuse, and recycling of end-of-life vehicles.

In Ireland, European Union (End-of-Life Vehicles) Regulations 2014 (SI 281 of 2014) put the EU Directive into national law.

Where can I bring my end-of-life vehicle?

You must deposit an end-of-life vehicle at an authorised treatment facility.

If you deposit an end-of-life vehicle at an unauthorised facility, you will not receive a certificate of destruction and may remain recorded as registered owner of the vehicle on the National Vehicle File.

Authorised treatment facilities are not responsible for transporting your vehicle, and you will have to arrange to bring the ELV to the facility yourself.

When you have deposited your vehicle at an authorised treatment facility, the owner or operator of the facility will:

• Issue you (if you are the registered owner) with a certificate of destruction.
• Forward the details of the certificate of destruction to the National Vehicle and Driver File, kept by the Department of Transport.

You are committing a criminal offence if you (or an authorised treatment facility) dispose of an end-of-life vehicle illegally.

If you do not deposit an end-of-life vehicle at an authorised treatment facility, you can be fined €100. Certain other offences around certificates of destruction and obligations on Authorised Treatment Facilities can result in a fine of €1000. The Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2015 introduced fixed payment notices (on the spot fines) for certain offences.

Other penalties for offences are set out in Regulation 35 of the Regulations and are:

• Summary conviction: a class A fine or 12 months imprisonment (or both).
• Conviction on indictment: a fine of up to €500,000 or 3-years imprisonment (or both).

Authorised Waste Treatment Facilities can be found on the below email address: www.elves.ie