Regulation on the Control of End-of-Life Vehicles

The Regulation on the Control of End-of-Life Vehicles falls within the responsibility of the Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change and was published in Official Gazette No. 27448 of 30 December 2009. Its aims are to prevent the generation of waste from vehicles, to regulate the reuse, recycling and recovery of end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) and their parts, and to reduce the quantity of waste to be disposed of (Article 1). Its legal basis is the Environment Law No. 2872 (Article 3). The text was updated by an amendment published in Official Gazette No. 27792 of 21 December 2010.

Which vehicles and persons does the Regulation cover?

It covers category M1 vehicles (carrying up to eight passengers besides the driver), category N1 vehicles (goods vehicles with a maximum mass not exceeding 3,500 kilograms) and three-wheeled vehicles other than motorcycles and mopeds, together with their components, parts and materials (Articles 2 and 4). It addresses vehicle owners, vehicle and parts manufacturers, economic operators, insurance companies, temporary storage areas and treatment facilities. Importing end-of-life vehicles is prohibited (Article 5).

What are the obligations of the vehicle owner and the insurer?

The vehicle owner must deliver the end-of-life vehicle to a collection point, temporary storage area or treatment facility and receive in return the approved vehicle deregistration and disposal form (Article 7). On delivery, the owner presents a document from the traffic registration authority showing that there is no attachment, pledge or injunction on the record and, except for vehicles already withdrawn from traffic, a tax office document showing that there are no debts such as motor vehicle tax and traffic fines (Article 13).

Manufacturers take back end-of-life vehicles with a negative market value from the owner without charging a fee; this obligation falls away in cases such as the vehicle not having been registered, missing major parts, or the presence of waste or scrap not belonging to the vehicle (Article 12). Insurance companies deliver total-loss vehicles to a licensed temporary storage area or treatment facility and report them annually to the Ministry (Article 9).

What is the vehicle deregistration and disposal form?

The form documents that the end-of-life vehicle’s traffic record has been cancelled and that it has been disposed of in an environmentally compatible way. Economic operators have it printed using serial numbers obtained from the Ministry and give it to the vehicle owner free of charge; it has four copies (Article 13). Presenting the form is mandatory when the vehicle is scrapped, and part (C) is endorsed once the scrapping is completed. The white copy and the registration certificate stating that the vehicle has been scrapped remain with the owner; the blue copy travels with the vehicle to the treatment facility and is sent to the Ministry in bulk at year end.

The Regulation on Vehicle Sales, Transfer and Registration Services likewise requires this form when M1, N1 and similar vehicles are scrapped (Article 44).

What does it mean for destruction and recycling?

The Regulation is directly a recovery and recycling regime. Vehicles are not sent to treatment facilities until they have been depolluted and dismantled; dismantling and storage are carried out so as to allow reuse, recovery and recycling of parts, and separate storage areas are set up for these parts (Article 14). Vehicles accepted into temporary storage areas are depolluted within thirty working days at most. Parts containing lead, mercury, cadmium and hexavalent chromium are collected in separate containers.

Economic operators must reach reuse and recovery rates of at least 85 per cent, and reuse and recycling rates of at least 80 per cent, of average vehicle weight; from 1 January 2020 these rates rise to 95 and 85 per cent respectively (Article 16). The rates are reported to the Ministry every year by the end of February (Article 20). The use of lead, mercury, cadmium and hexavalent chromium in vehicles is prohibited except for the exemptions in Annex 2 (Article 10).

What should be watched in practice?

Treatment facilities and temporary storage areas must hold an environmental permit and licence, and treatment facilities must in addition have a TS EN ISO 14001 environmental management system (Article 15). The technical criteria are detailed in the Communiqué on Technical Procedures for the Storage, Depollution, Dismantling and Treatment of End-of-Life Vehicles. Breaches are handled under the relevant provisions of Environment Law No. 2872 (Article 23).

For the vehicle owner, the key point is to deliver the vehicle to a licensed collection point or facility and to obtain the form in full; it is evidence not only of the scrapping procedure but also that the vehicle was disposed of in an environmentally sound way. For insurers and authorised facilities, the annual reporting deadlines and the rate targets are obligations to be monitored.