End of Life Vehicles
The end-of-life vehicle regulations S.I. No. 281/2014 – European Union (End-of-Life Vehicles) Regulations 2014. (irishstatutebook.ie) refer to a passenger car or light commercial van that the registered owner wants to dispose of as waste. You can deposit end-of-life cars and vans free of charge at authorised treatment facilities. When an end-of-life vehicle is deposited at an ATF or a car dismantler, as much material as possible is recovered and recycled and recovery takes place in a way that is not harmful to the environment.
Producer Responsibility
The Regulations require producers (i.e. importers and manufacturers of vehicles) to nominate free take-back centres to be known as Authorised Treatment Facilities (ATF) where the public can bring an end-of-life vehicle for final treatment. The public are obliged to use these facilities to dispose of their vehicles. The vehicles are depolluted and dismantled in a manner that avoids environmental pollution and the steel, plastic, glass, tyres etc. are recovered for recycling or re-use. From the 1st January 2007 onwards owners and operators of ATF’s must issue a certificate of destruction to the registered owner of the ELV. The ATF then retains the vehicle registration document and a copy of the certificate of destruction at the facility for a period of 7years, and notifies the Department of Transport that the vehicle has been destroyed. All Authorised Treatment Facilities (ATFs) in Offaly must have a valid waste facility permit issued by the Council.
If a haulier is used to collect your vehicle, they must have valid waste collection permit that allows them to collect end-of-life vehicles. If you suspect that they do not have a valid waste collection permit, take their vehicle registration details and report them to the Waste Enforcement Section on 057 9357403. Vehicles collected illegally often end up dumped or burnt out and are not safely disposed of.
Handing over your waste to an unauthorised collector is against the law. A person who is caught doing so is liable to be prosecuted under Section 32 of the Waste Management Act and may be fined up to €3,000 or imprisoned for up to 12 months.
Click here to find an Authorised ATF or Car Dismantler
If you operate an unauthorised facility or deposit your car at an unauthorised facility you may be liable to a fine and or prosecution.