Scrapped, Import & Export
Scrapped, imported and exported vehicle check
Some vehicles are recorded as destroyed, taken out of the country or brought in from abroad. Enter a registration and our check returns those markers, so you find out before you buy rather than when you try to insure it.
What this check covers
Scrapped and destroyed
Whether a Certificate of Destruction has been issued. Once a vehicle is scrapped at an authorised treatment facility, that record is permanent and the vehicle should never return to the road.
Exported
Whether the vehicle was recorded as permanently taken out of the UK. An exported marker on a car being sold here is a genuine problem, not a technicality.
Imported
Whether the vehicle was brought into the UK, and whether it came from inside or outside the EU. Not a fault, but it changes what you should check next.
Why a scrapped marker is a stop sign
A Certificate of Destruction means the vehicle was formally written out of existence. It cannot legally be re-registered or driven.
If a car with a scrapped marker is being offered for sale, there are two realistic explanations, and neither is good.
The registration has been transferred to a different vehicle, which is cloning.
A written-off vehicle has been rebuilt from parts and put back on the road illegally.
Either way, walk. Confirm the identity with a VIN check and run a stolen car check before you do anything else.
What an export marker means
The keeper told DVLA the vehicle was leaving the UK permanently. The registration is closed off at that point.
Sometimes it is an error, for example, a car that was exported and later brought back without the record being corrected. Sometimes it is deliberate, because an exported record makes a vehicle harder to trace.
A car with an export marker will be difficult to tax and insure, and re-registering it is a paperwork job that falls to you as the buyer. Ask the seller to resolve it before money changes hands, not after.
Buying an imported car
An import marker is not a warning. Plenty of good cars are imported, and some models are only available that way. It does change your checklist.
The history may be incomplete
Mileage and service records from before the import often do not carry across. A low mileage import can be genuine, or it can be a car whose foreign history simply is not visible. Read the MOT history carefully, since UK testing starts from the import date.
Specification can differ
Imported vehicles may have different equipment, lighting or emissions certification from the UK model. That affects both compliance and value.
Insurance often costs more
Insurers price imports higher, particularly grey imports from outside the EU. Get a quote on the registration before you commit.
Value is usually lower
An import is typically worth less than an identical UK supplied car. Run a car valuation so you are negotiating against a realistic figure.
How to check
Enter the registration
Take the full report for the markers
Match the paperwork
Where our data comes from
Scrapped, import and export markers come from DVLA-sourced records. REGUP is an independent vehicle checking service and does not claim to be DVLA, DVSA or GOV.UK. More on the about REGUP page. Records can take a few days to update after a status change.
Scrapped, Import & Export FAQs
How do I check if a car has been scrapped?
Enter the registration and take a full report. It returns any destruction, scrapped, import or export marker recorded against the vehicle.
Can a scrapped car be put back on the road?
No. A Certificate of Destruction is final. If a scrapped vehicle is being sold to you, treat it as cloned or illegally rebuilt and walk away.
Is buying an imported car a bad idea?
Not at all, provided you check it properly. The risks are incomplete history, different specification, higher insurance and lower resale value, not the import itself.
What is the difference between scrapped and written off?
A write-off is an insurer's decision that repair costs too much, and Cat S and Cat N vehicles can legally return to the road. Scrapped means destroyed and gone for good.
Why does my own car show as exported?
Usually a notification error, sometimes made by a previous keeper. Contact DVLA to have the record corrected, because it will block taxing and insuring the vehicle.
Is this check free?
Vehicle details and MOT history are free. Scrapped, import and export markers sit inside a paid report.
Check vehicle status
Enter any UK registration to start with a free car check, then take a full vehicle history report for scrapped, import, export, finance and write-off records.