Car Scrapping and Charity: How Giving is Paving the Way for Greener Roads in the UK

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Hi all,

Here is a fantastic initiative from an organisation in the UK called Giveacar at: http://wwww.giveacar.co.uk. This is a really impressive project created by some great lateral thinking so have a look and get on board!

Car Scrapping and Charity: How Giving is Paving the Way for Greener Roads in the UK

The damage caused to air quality by old, inefficient, cars has been well-documented, and though there is clearly much left to be done, advances are being made all the time in the production of hybrid and electric motors. But the question remains about what is the best way to handle end-of-life vehicles coming off the roads, as these too can pose a serious environmental threat.

Giveacar began operating in 2010. It’s a new social enterprise that arose partly from what its 24-year-old founder Tom Chance saw as a need to reduce the environmental impact of old and end-of-life cars. Inspired by several schemes operating in the US, such as CharityCar.us (which donate the funds generated by car scrapping to good causes) he saw the opportunity to combine car junking with charitable giving - a largely untapped market in the UK.  

Giveacar provides a free-of-charge service to its customers, arranging for the collection and environmentally responsible recycling of end-of-life vehicles. Once the cars have been scrapped, Giveacar then donates the proceeds (after administrative costs) to the charity or charities of the car owner’s choice on their behalf.

As one charity they work with, The Children’s Trust, tweeted, it’s a “Win win” process, providing a service that end-of-life vehicle owners are in need of, creating a new revenue stream for charities, and all to the benefit of the environment.  

Working with Britain’s leading car salvage agents - in cases where a car is not of auction-worthy value - Giveacar ensures that it is recycled and scrapped to the highest environmental standards; this is what happens to approximately 90% of the vehicle donations Giveacar receives.

Some 1 million cars come off British roads every year without being properly disposed of. Many of these end up abandoned in driveways or by roadsides, leaking hazardous waste, heavy metals and toxins into the soil, while oils and fluids are poured into sewers and down drains. Others are cherry-picked of their valuable parts by unscrupulous car scrappers before being abandoned. An additional concern is that of cars - which have been supposedly scrapped - being brought back onto the roads illegally, thus posing considerable pollution, not to mention safety, problems. 

Through guaranteeing to process car scrappage only at one of the UK’s  1,617 Authorized Treatment Facilities, or ATFs (where pollutants are safely recovered and disposed of) Giveacar ensures that all the hazardous materials are removed without impacting negatively on the environment. The shell of the car is then sent off for recycling.

Since its inception, Giveacar has managed to raise over $300,000 for over 250 charities, and has taken thousands of end-of-life vehicles off the roads for good.