Old vehicles are full of harmful chemicals which cause pollution if not treated properly. However, they are also full of valuable used parts and recyclable materials that should be extracted and reused. The EU has had legislation for decades to regulate the treatment of old cars to ensure that the harmful parts are treated. In practice, this meant that many car parts are not recycled or reused as they should be.

In the process of improving the reuse and recycling of cars (and banning unsafe vehicles from export), the EU planned to include other vehicles such as trucks and motorcycles into the legislation. Evidence showed that motorcycle parts are routinely reused and recycled and therefore we had concerns that the legislation might harm an otherwise successful market. We also had concerns about the impact on historical vehicles and potential overspill into amateur sport where used parts reduce costs.

European Union

€30,000

2024 – 2026

Federation of European Motorcyclists Associations

Meet with officials and MEPs to outline concerns.

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Ensure that historic vehicles and their parts are exempt, ensure that sport vehicles are exempt and that parts are available, protect the current commercial process for specialised disassembly, ensure that owner repairs and restorations remain possible.

The legislation is moving into its final phase, but we anticipate achieving our goals.