City guide
Brighton and Hove is a compact seaside city where parking is scarce and controlled almost everywhere near the centre. For many residents, giving up a little-used car is a relief, and scrapping it properly takes very little time.
Free collection
Start with the registration and the postcode where the car is parked.
Brighton & Hove City Council is a unitary authority covering both towns and the villages on the edge of the Downs, such as Rottingdean and Patcham. It runs a large network of controlled parking zones, each identified by a letter, with resident permits that cover only the zone printed on them.
The A23 brings traffic in from London, the A27 bypasses the city to the north, and the A259 runs along the seafront. Many central streets, especially in Hanover and Kemptown, are steep, narrow terraces lined with parked cars.
A car in a controlled zone needs its permit until it has gone. Cancel it with the council afterwards.
On narrow terraced streets, suggest a nearby junction or a wider road where loading is allowed.
Registration and postcode are enough; collection is free.
Then cancel insurance and ask the council about any permit refund.
Brighton’s low emission zone, introduced in 2015 on the busy central route, applies to buses rather than private cars. Owners of older cars are not charged for driving in the city, though emissions affect the price of resident parking permits.
West of the city centre, Hove and Portslade have wider avenues and more homes with drives, so collection there is usually straightforward. To the north and east, Patcham, Woodingdean and Rottingdean sit up against the South Downs, with steep roads and some narrow lanes.
In Hanover and the streets climbing from the Lewes Road, the hills are steep and many roads are one-way. If your car is parked on a slope, tell the driver which way it faces and whether the handbrake still holds. That detail decides how the car is winched onto the truck, and makes the visit quicker for everyone.
Brighton at a glance
Questions
Answers specific to scrapping a car here.
Brighton & Hove City Council.
Yes, with access. Mention height limits and any barrier or code when you book.
Start with the registration and postcode. A licensed buyer covering your area comes back with an offer, and collection is free.