Copart vs SYNETIQ vs Motorhog: UK salvage auctions compared

Motorhog merged into SYNETIQ, which IAA now owns. Who really sells UK salvage, and both houses' fee schedules run on the same hammer prices.

BUYING · 5 min read

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Short answer

There are fewer separate houses than the names suggest. Motorhog is not its own auction any more. It merged into SYNETIQ in 2019, and SYNETIQ has been owned by IAA since October 2021, so its online sale now runs as IAA Salvage Auction. For someone buying online that leaves two national platforms, Copart and SYNETIQ/IAA, plus the E2E network's member yards and a few smaller sellers. On fees, the two big platforms charge the same bill to the pound on almost every lot between £100 and £10,000.

Who actually sells UK salvage?

When the Competition and Markets Authority cleared IAA's purchase of SYNETIQ in March 2022, it found Copart handled over 60 percent of the salvage work UK insurers put out. The combined SYNETIQ and IAA business came second on 10 to 20 percent, and E2E third. E2E is not one company. It is a membership network of salvage firms that deal with insurers through a single point of contact, and Hills is one of its members. The CMA also named Recycling Lives as running its own auction platform. SYNETIQ itself was formed in 2019 from Car Transplants, Motorhog and an IT firm, DH Systems, which is why old Motorhog auction links now land on SYNETIQ's sale. Copart's bigger share means more lots a day and more bidders on each one.

How do the fees compare?

Both charge the same shape of bill. Copart UK adds a buyer fee banded by hammer price, an internet bid fee and a £50 lot retrieval fee. IAA's schedule, in force from 1 April 2026, adds a banded buyer fee, an admin fee and a £50 lot retrieval fee. All of it is plus VAT at both. We put every hammer price from £1 to £10,000 through Copart's standard buyer schedule (the one our Analyzer uses) and IAA's standard-volume schedule. From £100 to £9,999 the totals match to the pound, apart from £7,500 to £7,999, where IAA is £4 dearer before VAT. IAA's buyer fee runs £10 lower per band and its admin fee £10 higher, so they cancel out. Under £100 Copart is £10 dearer. Worked examples, fees including VAT: £500 hammer, £280.80 at either house. £1,500 hammer, £472.80. £3,000 hammer, £664.80. From £10,000 both switch to a percentage, 6.4 percent at IAA against 6.5 percent at Copart. The high-volume rates at each house line up the same way.

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What that means when you bid

Fees will not make an IAA lot cheaper or dearer than a Copart lot at the same hammer price, so you can compare the two houses on hammer price, collection distance and condition alone. Some lots at either house also carry VAT on the hammer price itself, so read the lot page for that. Because the fee lines match, the Analyzer's fee line holds for an IAA lot under £10,000 too.

Joining and paying

Copart UK registration is £100 for 12 months at the time of writing, per Copart UK's help pages, and no trade licence is needed. IAA membership is £70 plus VAT for a year, and you need full photo ID and proof of address. IAA says anyone can register, but every lot is a trade sale, suitable for the motor trade only, and all registrations go through on a trade basis. At IAA, payment is due within 72 hours of the sale or a £40 late charge applies. A lot left unpaid or uncollected for 7 calendar days can bring a re-listing fee of 15 percent of the winning bid, minimum £100 and maximum £600, plus VAT.

What about the smaller sellers?

Smaller salvage firms sell online too. SalvageMarket is the E2E network's own online auction, where ASM Auto Recycling, Silverlake Autoparts and other member yards list their stock. It closes roughly 800 lots a week by our own count, and it is where the recorded closing bids on our free salvage price pages come from. They show the highest bid on each lot as it closed, not a confirmed sale, so treat them as a guide to the going rate for a model, not a guaranteed price. Its fees work differently from Copart's and IAA's, with a yard site fee on most lots, see SalvageMarket buyer fees explained.

Which should you use?

Watch both big platforms rather than picking one. Copart gives you more lots to choose from. IAA gives you a second pool of the same kind of insurer stock at the same fees. What separates two similar lots is the hammer price, how far the yard is from you, since collection is your cost, and how honest the photos are. Run each lot through the Analyzer with a realistic collection cost and bid where the numbers work.

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Related guides

• How to read an MOT failure sheet when buying salvage - An MOT failure sheet is a free inspection someone else paid for. How to turn a list of defects into a real repair number before you bid on a cheap car.
• MOT advisories explained: what they mean when buying a car - An advisory is not a fail, but it is a warning of the next bill. How to read MOT advisory items when buying used or salvage, and which ones actually matter.
• Are fire-damaged cars ever worth buying? - Fire damage scares off almost every bidder, which is why the rare genuine deal hides here. What burns clean, what never comes back, and how to tell.