Hampshire · city guide
Southampton is a port city split by the River Itchen, with docks along its waterfront and suburbs spreading north towards the M27. Wherever your car is parked, the process for scrapping it is the same; only the route the truck takes changes.
Free collection
Start with the registration and the postcode where the car is parked.
Southampton City Council is a unitary authority covering the whole city. It considered a charging clean air zone and decided against one, choosing other measures instead, so private cars are not charged to drive in the city.
The River Itchen divides the city. Woolston, Sholing and Bitterne on the east bank connect to the centre across the tolled Itchen Bridge or further upstream at Northam. The M271 links the western docks to the M27, and the M3 reaches the north of the city at junction 14.
Many streets around the university in Portswood and Highfield, and near the centre, are in residents' parking zones.
Use the registration and postcode, and mention flood or salt corrosion if the car has been kept near the water.
Free, at a time you agree; payment by bank transfer.
Notify the DVLA online, then cancel any permit with Southampton City Council.
With two universities, Southampton sees cars left behind at the end of tenancies and academic years. If you are a landlord or a student with a car you no longer need, scrapping it properly is far better than leaving it on the street, where it may be reported as abandoned to the city council.
The Western Docks and the cruise terminals sit right beside the city centre. On days when several cruise ships are in, traffic on the A33 and the roads around the docks can be heavy, so a collection from the central or western parts of the city may take a little longer to reach.
Shirley, Millbrook and Maybush, to the west, are mostly residential with a mix of on-street parking and drives. North of the centre, Bassett and Swaythling have larger homes and quieter roads, while St Denys and Portswood have the terraces and student houses where residents’ parking schemes are common.
Southampton at a glance
Questions
Answers specific to scrapping a car here.
Southampton City Council.
No. The city chose not to introduce a charging zone.
Start with the registration and postcode. A licensed buyer covering your area comes back with an offer, and collection is free.