Finland launches digital car scrapping service

It promises users to help them recycle their old vehicles from the comfort of their sofas

Suomen Autokierrätys, a Finnish car recycling producer association, announced last week that it had launched a new digital car scrapping service called DELV, which would revolutionize the way disposing of old vehicles is done in the country.

Motorists can now ensure their car is properly disposed of and deregistered without leaving their couch. The service integrates nearly 300 reception points across the country, with the entire process, including the issuance of a scrapping certificate, being fully digital," said Juha Kenraali, CEO of Suomen Autokierrätys, according to Helsinki Times.

Reducing the number of “ghost cars”

The digital platform has been touted as being a win-win solution for car owners, the industry and the environment.

Its aims are making the process of car scrapping easier for consumers by lessening the bureaucratic burden and time, improving the recycling and reuse of automotive materials, enhancing data collection, and reducing the number of "ghost cars". The latter term refers to cars that are simply abandoned and left in public places to rust or ones that have their parts sold without declaration, or even cars that are exported without being deregistered in Finland.

Every year, some 70,000 to 80,000 cars are scrapped in the Nordic country, however, another 30,000 remain unaccounted for which means that about a third of old vehicles there don’t get proper recycling.

The hope is that the new digital service will encourage people to do car scrapping the proper way simply by adding convenience as a major incentive to consumers.

Finland's new car recycling service is reportedly the first of its kind globally, uniting consumers, recycling operators, reception centres, car manufacturers, importers, insurers, and authorities under one platform.

EU regulations require that at least 95% of a car's weight be reusable and recyclable.