What is a salvage car?

If a vehicle has been in an accident, stolen or weather-damaged and repairing it is going to cost more than the vehicle is worth, the insurer will classify it a write it off.  Insurers will sell the vehicle to us as a total loss if the damage exceeds anything between 75 and 90% of the value of the car, depending on the insurer.

Why buy a salvage car?

Salvaged cars are way cheaper than other used cars that you can buy privately or through a dealer and can be great value for money.  Even after you’ve paid for repairs, you’re still paying far less than you would for the same car in the used car market.

What are salvage categories?

There are different salvage categories, provided by the Association of British Insurers, that are used to explain the type of damage to the vehicle.  It’s important to check the salvage category of a vehicle you are interested in to make sure that it’s right for your purpose.

• Category A

These vehicles can never reappear on the road and must only be crushed and used for scrap;

• Category B

These vehicles can never reappear on the roads but can be dismantled for recycled parts;

• Category C

These vehicles are repairable but the costs exceed the vehicle’s value.  They can reappear on the road once repaired;

• Category D

These vehicles are repairable but the costs, including any delays in sourcing parts, are significant.  They can reappear on the road once repaired.

Registering for Silverlake’s online salvage auction

It’s FREE to view over 1,800 online car, van, 4×4, motorbike, HGV & Plant, caravan and commercial vehicles and registering with Silverlake couldn’t be easier.  Click here to follow the simple steps and get ready to start browsing our auction vehicles at a time to suit you.

Our auction vehicles are made up from:

• Insurance write offs, both category C and D’s
• Stolen and recovered vehicles
• Private entry vehicles
• Unrecorded accident damaged
• Trade in’s
• Local authority contracts

See before you buy

All of our online auction vehicles are available to view Monday to Saturday by appointment only at our site in Shedfield, Southampton. To book an appointment, or if you just have a question, give our salvage team a call on 01489 772244. They’re ready to help.

Collecting your vehicle

For those of you lucky enough to have won a vehicle on our online salvage auction we’re open for collections between 8:30am and 4:00pm Monday to Friday and 8:30am to 3:30pm on Saturday.

Sell your car with us

If you have a vehicle that you would like to put through our online salvage auction please give us a call on 01489 772244 to find out more.