Please note this is not a BMRA event

With just under one month to go, industry stakeholders from across the vehicle recycling and wider automotive circular economy sector are being encouraged to secure their place at the ATF Professional Vehicle Recycling Conference 2026, taking place at the British Motor Museum in Gaydon on 11 June.

Under the theme Auto Recycling Intelligence, the event is aimed at vehicle recyclers, dismantlers, salvage operators, insurers, OEMs, fleet operators, repair networks, EV and battery specialists, policymakers and service providers working across the vehicle lifecycle. Registration opens at 9 am, with the conference programme beginning at 9.45 am.

A sector facing faster change
For UK Authorised Treatment Facilities (ATFs), the timing matters. Electrification is accelerating, battery volumes are rising, regulation may be changing, insurer and OEM strategies are shifting, and artificial intelligence is starting to affect operational decision-making. These are not abstract trends; they influence what arrives at the gate, how vehicles are handled, where value is recovered, and how compliance risk is managed.
The conference is designed to bring together practical sessions and real-world perspectives from OEM leaders, battery circularity experts, policymakers, insurers, financial strategists and AI innovators. For operators, the value lies in understanding how these wider forces translate into everyday business decisions: vehicle intake, depollution processes, parts recovery, battery storage, data systems, staffing, insurance relationships and future investment.

Secure your ticket before 3 June - atfpro.co.uk/conference-26

Policy, circularity and OEM expectations
One of the most significant speakers for UK recyclers will be Mary Creagh CBE MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at Defra, whose ministerial brief includes circular economy policy, waste reduction and resource efficiency. Her presence gives the event direct relevance for operators watching the direction of UK waste and recycling policy.

The OEM perspective will also be central. Leon van der Merwe, Vice President at Toyota Motor Europe, will address design for circularity and the manufacturer’s view of end-of-life. His session is expected to explore how circular economy strategy is influencing vehicle design, dismantling processes, data transparency and material flows. For ATFs, that raises an important commercial question: how can recyclers position themselves as trusted partners in a more structured, OEM-led circular value chain?

EV batteries move from emerging issue to operational priority
Battery handling will be one of the most practical areas for delegates. Hans Eric Melin, founder and managing director of CES Research and Consulting, will examine the battery end-of-life chain, including reuse, recycling and the wider value chain. Alan Colledge, Technical Director at Lithium Battery Recycling Solutions, a SUEZ company, will focus on safe handling, market reality and the road ahead for lithium batteries.

For ATFs, this is where compliance and commercial opportunity meet. Damaged or unknown-state batteries pose storage, transport and fire-risk challenges, but they also sit within a developing market for reuse, materials recovery and downstream processing. Understanding where battery value is likely to sit over the next decade will help operators decide where to invest, what skills to build, and which partnerships are worth pursuing.

Claims, total loss and future ELV flows
Insurer behaviour will also be under the spotlight. Paul Sell, Director at Trend Tracker, Industry Insights and Service Certainty, will explore repair-versus-write-off decisions, parts pressures and claims trends. These decisions directly affect salvage volumes, ELV flows and the availability of vehicles for dismantling and green parts recovery.

Mark Main, Director at EY, will consider how total cost of ownership models must now take account of end-of-life risk, battery uncertainty and disposal obligations. For ATFs, this links boardroom finance to yard-level reality: high-voltage skills, EV storage, residual value uncertainty and the economics of dismantling.

Data, AI and scalable reuse
The conference will also look at how operators can improve efficiency. Conrad Caine, founder of Machines Like Me, will address practical AI applications, including process optimisation, workflow automation and data handling. The message is expected to be grounded: AI should support vehicle recycling expertise, not replace it.

Hugues Delval, CEO of Autocirc, will examine how recyclers can move from waste handling towards scalable, traceable reuse of pre-owned OEM parts across the aftermarket. That is a key direction for ATFs looking to protect margins while meeting demand from repairers, insurers and customers for reliable green parts.

Secure your ticket before 3 June - atfpro.co.uk/conference-26

Why attendance matters
Haydn Davies, Director of ARW-GROUP LTD, publisher of ATF Professional, said:
“With just one month to go, this year’s ATF Professional Vehicle Recycling Conference is shaping up to be an important meeting point for stakeholders across the sector. Vehicle recycling is no longer a conversation for ATFs alone; it now involves insurers, repairers, OEMs, fleet operators, policymakers, technology providers and the wider circular economy supply chain.

Auto Recycling Intelligence is about bringing those voices together to look at where the industry is heading, from EV batteries and green parts to regulation, AI, data and future vehicle design. For anyone involved in end-of-life vehicle management, this is a chance to understand the risks, opportunities and partnerships that will shape the market over the years ahead.”

For UK vehicle recyclers, Auto Recycling Intelligence 2026 is not simply a networking event. It is a chance to test current business models against the direction of travel in regulation, electrification, insurer behaviour, OEM strategy and digital operations.

The operators best placed for the next phase will be those who understand where risk lies, where value is created, and how to turn compliance, data, and operational discipline into a competitive advantage. For ATFs planning investment, partnerships or process change in 2026, this is a room worth being in.

With tickets needing to be secured before 3 June, now is the time for stakeholders across the sector to register, review the agenda and consider how the issues on the programme could shape their organisations, partnerships and strategies for the year ahead.

Secure your ticket before 3 June - atfpro.co.uk/conference-26