Quick Answer
Copart UK adds a tiered buyer fee — Fee B for buyers taking fewer than 12 vehicles a year, the cheaper Fee A above that — plus an internet bid fee and a £50 lot-retrieval fee, with 20% VAT on all three. On a £2,000 VAT Margin win the fees are £574.80 including VAT, for an all-in cost of £2,574.80, or 28.7% of the bid. A VAT Qualifying lot adds another £400 of VAT on the bid itself, taking it to £2,974.80.
How Copart UK Fees Are Calculated
Copart UK prices work differently from the US. The fees are in pounds, 20% VAT is added to every fee, and whether the vehicle itself carries VAT depends on the lot type:
The buyer fee is tiered by the hammer price — Fee B if you buy fewer than 12 vehicles a year, the cheaper Fee A if you buy 12 or more. The internet bid fee is tiered by the bid and higher for a Live bid. The lot retrieval fee is £50 (£60 inc VAT) on every sale. Vehicle VAT is nil on a VAT Margin lot and 20% of the hammer price on a VAT Qualifying lot.
Most Copart UK stock is insurance salvage, so the lot you are bidding on is usually a written-off car with a damage category attached. Work out what the repaired car is worth first — our UK car insurance write-off calculator covers the Cat S / Cat N valuation side — then use the fee figures below to see what the auction itself adds.
Copart UK Buyer Fee Chart 2026 (Fee B and Fee A)
Copart UK publishes two buyer-fee columns on the same table. Fee B is the Low Volume rate — fewer than 12 vehicles in the current or previous year, which is almost every private buyer, and the default in the calculator. Fee A is the High Volume rate for 12 or more vehicles a year. Both run as flat brackets that rise with the hammer price, then switch to a percentage of the bid at £10,000. Every figure is net; 20% VAT is added on top.
| Hammer price | Fee B (net) | Fee B inc 20% VAT | Fee A (net) |
|---|---|---|---|
| £0 – £49.99 | £20 | £24.00 | £5 |
| £50 – £99.99 | £65 | £78.00 | £20 |
| £100 – £199.99 | £85 | £102.00 | £45 |
| £200 – £299.99 | £105 | £126.00 | £65 |
| £300 – £349.99 | £115 | £138.00 | £75 |
| £350 – £399.99 | £125 | £150.00 | £85 |
| £400 – £449.99 | £135 | £162.00 | £95 |
| £450 – £499.99 | £140 | £168.00 | £100 |
| £500 – £549.99 | £145 | £174.00 | £105 |
| £550 – £599.99 | £150 | £180.00 | £115 |
| £600 – £699.99 | £165 | £198.00 | £125 |
| £700 – £799.99 | £180 | £216.00 | £140 |
| £800 – £899.99 | £195 | £234.00 | £155 |
| £900 – £999.99 | £210 | £252.00 | £170 |
| £1,000 – £1,199.99 | £225 | £270.00 | £185 |
| £1,200 – £1,299.99 | £245 | £294.00 | £205 |
| £1,300 – £1,399.99 | £255 | £306.00 | £215 |
| £1,400 – £1,499.99 | £265 | £318.00 | £225 |
| £1,500 – £1,599.99 | £275 | £330.00 | £235 |
| £1,600 – £1,699.99 | £285 | £342.00 | £245 |
| £1,700 – £1,799.99 | £300 | £360.00 | £260 |
| £1,800 – £1,999.99 | £310 | £372.00 | £270 |
| £2,000 – £2,399.99 | £340 | £408.00 | £300 |
| £2,400 – £2,499.99 | £365 | £438.00 | £325 |
| £2,500 – £2,999.99 | £390 | £468.00 | £350 |
| £3,000 – £3,499.99 | £425 | £510.00 | £385 |
| £3,500 – £3,999.99 | £465 | £558.00 | £425 |
| £4,000 – £4,499.99 | £510 | £612.00 | £470 |
| £4,500 – £4,999.99 | £535 | £642.00 | £495 |
| £5,000 – £5,999.99 | £555 | £666.00 | £515 |
| £6,000 – £7,499.99 | £565 | £678.00 | £525 |
| £7,500 – £9,999.99 | £590 | £708.00 | £550 |
| £10,000 and above | 6.5% of hammer | 7.8% of hammer | 5.5% of hammer |
Note the two brackets between £4,000 and £5,000: £4,000 – £4,499.99 is £510 and £4,500 – £4,999.99 is £535. Several Copart fee charts online merge them into one £510 row, which understates a £4,500–£5,000 win by £25 net (£30 inc VAT).
The internet bid fee is tiered by the bid and about £10 higher for a Live bid than for a Preliminary (Pre-Bid):
| Bid amount | Pre-Bid (net) | Live bid (net) |
|---|---|---|
| £0 – £99.99 | Free | Free |
| £100 – £499.99 | £25 | £35 |
| £500 – £999.99 | £39 | £49 |
| £1,000 – £1,499.99 | £59 | £69 |
| £1,500 – £1,999.99 | £69 | £79 |
| £2,000 – £3,999.99 | £79 | £89 |
| £4,000 – £5,999.99 | £89 | £99 |
| £6,000 – £7,999.99 | £95 | £105 |
| £8,000 and above | £99 | £109 |
Copart UK Storage, Late Payment and Relist Fees
The fees above are what you pay on a normal, prompt purchase. Miss a deadline and three more charges start — and they are the ones that catch buyers out, because the clock starts at the auction, not at the invoice.
Storage is free for the first three days after the sale. From day 4 it is charged daily, and once you are past those first three days weekends and UK bank holidays count as chargeable days too. Amounts are net of VAT:
| Day after sale | Storage (net) | Inc 20% VAT |
|---|---|---|
| Days 1 – 3 | Free | Free |
| Day 4 | £5 | £6.00 |
| Day 5 | £10 | £12.00 |
| Day 6 | £15 | £18.00 |
| Day 7 | £20 | £24.00 |
| Day 8 | £20 | £24.00 |
| Day 9 | £25 | £30.00 |
| Day 10 onwards | £40 per day | £48.00 per day |
Leave a car ten days and storage alone has cost £95 net before the £40-a-day rate even starts. The late payment fee is £50, and the payment window is three working days after the auction including the day of sale — not three days from the invoice, which is where most people lose a day. The relist fee applies if the lot is still unpaid at close of business on the 6th calendar day from the auction date, and it is 10% of the sale price or £300, whichever is higher.
| Fee | Amount (net) | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Lot retrieval | £50 (£60 inc VAT) | Every sale, all vehicles — included in the calculator |
| Late payment | £50 | Not paid within 3 working days of the auction, counting the day of sale |
| Storage | £5 – £40 per day | From day 4 after the sale, weekends and bank holidays included |
| Relist | 10% of sale price, minimum £300 | Unpaid at close of business on the 6th calendar day from the auction |
| Virtual Vehicle Viewing | £10 per vehicle | Optional — a remote inspection of a lot before you bid |
| Registration | £100 one-off | Opening a Copart UK buyer account |
| Annual renewal | From £75 | Keeping the account active; the published figure is a starting price |
Copart UK Delivery Costs
Copart does not publish a delivery price list. There is no per-mile rate, no postcode-zone table and no minimum charge. Delivery is quoted per lot, in real time: Copart’s vehicle delivery page says it will “provide you with a quote to deliver your vehicle to your registered address where delivery is an option”, shown on the Lot Details page and again under Payments Due once you have won. The calculator above excludes delivery for that reason — there is no published figure to compute.
What Copart does publish are the conditions:
| Condition | What Copart states |
|---|---|
| Price | Quoted per lot at the time of purchase — no published rate card |
| Delivery type | Kerbside only; you need the equipment to move the vehicle from the kerb |
| Shipping ports | Not delivered — a booking that includes a shipping port address is cancelled |
| Specialist vehicles | Additional delivery costs may apply |
| Northern Ireland | No delivery from Belfast to UK mainland locations |
| Republic of Ireland | No Copart delivery service; Copart provides subhaul partner contacts instead |
Copart runs its own fleet for UK mainland delivery, or you can arrange collection with your own transporter. Delivery availability is set per lot rather than per site, so check the Lot Details page before you bid.
How to Use the Copart UK Fee Calculator
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Enter the hammer price
Type the bid you expect to win the vehicle for, in pounds. Every fee is worked out from this figure.
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Pick your buyer type
Leave it on Fee B if you buy fewer than 12 vehicles a year — that is the private-buyer rate. Switch to Fee A only if you genuinely buy 12 or more a year, because it is a materially cheaper schedule and will understate your costs otherwise.
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Set the bid type and VAT status
Choose Live bid or Pre-Bid (Live costs about £10 more in internet bid fee), then pick VAT Margin or VAT Qualifying from the lot details — this decides whether 20% VAT is added to the bid itself.
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Read the breakdown
The result panel lists the hammer price, any vehicle VAT, the buyer fee, the internet bid fee and the £60 lot retrieval — all including VAT — and the all-in total. It also shows the total VAT you pay and the fees as a percentage of your bid.
Copart UK Fee Examples
Every row below comes from the tables above, with 20% VAT applied to the fees and the £60 lot retrieval included:
| Hammer | Settings | Fees inc VAT | All-in cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| £500 | Fee B · Pre-Bid · Margin | £280.80 | £780.80 |
| £2,000 | Fee B · Live · Margin | £574.80 | £2,574.80 |
| £2,000 | Fee A · Live · Margin | £526.80 | £2,526.80 |
| £2,000 | Fee B · Live · Qualifying | £574.80 + £400 vehicle VAT | £2,974.80 |
| £4,700 | Fee B · Live · Margin | £820.80 | £5,520.80 |
| £5,000 | Fee B · Live · Margin | £844.80 | £5,844.80 |
| £12,000 | Fee B · Live · Margin | £1,126.80 | £13,126.80 |
Three things to read out of that table. The two £2,000 Margin rows are the same car — the £48 gap is Fee A instead of Fee B. The £2,000 Qualifying row is again the same car and the same fees; the extra £400 is 20% VAT on the hammer price alone, which is why checking that label matters more than anything else on the page. And the fee percentage falls hard as the bid rises: 28.7% of the bid at £2,000, 16.9% at £5,000, 9.4% at £12,000.
How to Reduce Copart UK Fees
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Check the VAT status before you bid
A VAT Qualifying lot adds 20% to the hammer price that a private buyer cannot reclaim. On a £5,000 car that is £1,000 — favour VAT Margin lots unless you are VAT-registered and can recover it.
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Pay inside three working days of the auction
The window includes the day of sale, so a Monday auction has to be paid by Wednesday. That skips the £50 late fee and keeps the lot away from the 6th-day relist charge of 10% or £300, whichever is higher.
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Collect within the three free storage days
Storage starts on day 4 and reaches £40 a day from day 10, with weekends and bank holidays counting. Booking transport before you bid is what actually prevents this, not chasing it afterwards.
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Use a Pre-Bid where you can
A Preliminary bid’s internet fee is about £10 lower than a Live bid across every bracket — small on one car, real across several.
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Budget with the inc-VAT total, not the bid
Fees are 28.7% of the bid at £2,000 and 16.9% at £5,000. Run the number through the calculator first and set a maximum bid that keeps the all-in total inside your budget.
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Buy enough to reach Fee A
Buyers taking 12 or more vehicles a year move to the Fee A schedule — £300 instead of £340 net at a £2,000 hammer, and 5.5% instead of 6.5% above £10,000. If you flip regularly, the volume pays for itself.
Frequently Asked Questions
Buying at a Copart auction outside the UK? Use our Copart Fee Calculator (USA) for US dollar fees, title and payment splits, or the Copart Canada Fee Calculator for CAD fees plus provincial GST/HST/PST.
