"Scrap tires" is searched about 720 times a month worldwide, according to Ubersuggest, with "we buy scrap tires for cash" about 480, "who buys scrap tires near me" about 390, "scrap tires disposal" about 320 and "scrap tires pick up" about 140. The search wording assumes a buyer pays, and for most scrap tires that is the wrong way round. This guide explains who takes scrap tires, who pays whom, the exceptions where a seller is paid and how to check a collector. It belongs to our guide to selling scrap cars, car parts and used tires online, and it follows where to sell used tires. We give no prices, because we found no reliable source. ScrapTrade operates a scrap marketplace and gains from scrap trading, which you should weigh.
The usual answer: you pay
Scrap tires mostly go to dedicated recycling and processing facilities, and one source we read says that ordinary scrap tires usually carry a fee and not a payout. The only cases where a seller is usually paid, the same source says, are high-quality commercial casings suitable for retreading and lightly used tires destined for resale. We did not find typical per-tire fees or payouts for haulers, because they vary by place and market, so ask local collectors. The fee is not necessarily a scam. It is the cost of shredding and handling a bulky waste, and in many places it is funded by a levy, as our guide to tire disposal fees explains.
Who takes scrap tires
- Haulers and collectors. They pick tires up from shops, fleets and yards, and take them to processors. Who pays whom depends on local programs and the market.
- Processors and recyclers. They shred and grind tires into products, as our guide to how tire recycling works describes.
- Tire shops. Many take old tires when they sell new ones, usually with a fee.
- Retreaders and casing dealers. They want sound truck and aircraft casings, and they are the main buyers that pay.
- Used-tire retailers and wholesalers. They take tires with enough tread and sound structure for a second life.
Who pays for casings
A casing is the body of a tire that remains after the tread wears. Retreaders put new tread on sound casings, and the Retread Tire Association says sellers of unwanted casings can find retreaders in their area through its site. Some firms procure domestic and imported truck casings for the most popular sizes and distribute them to networks of retreaders. Casing programs can also pay in credit and not cash: Continental's ContiCasingAccount, for example, lets dealers earn credit by paying used casings from truck customers into an account. Casings are graded on age and condition, and one source says most quality retread plants cap casings at five to seven years from the DOT date code. A fleet-software blog quoted figures for what a casing is worth, which we do not repeat because the source sells software.
"We buy scrap tires for cash"
Some advertisers offer cash for scrap tires, and we could not verify what they pay or for which tires. Treat the phrase as a reason to ask, not as a price: which tires, in what quantity, collected from where, paid how, and whether the same business charges a fee for the other tires. A buyer who wants only your best casings and leaves the worn ones is quoting a different job from one who takes everything.
How to check a hauler
- Ask who pays whom. Fee, payment or credit, and for which tires.
- Ask where the tires go. To a processor or a retreader, and whether the hauler will say so in writing.
- Ask about licensing. Many places regulate scrap tire haulers and storage, and we did not review the schemes. Ask for a licence or registration number where one applies.
- Get a receipt. With the count, the date and the hauler's details.
- Keep records. If tires you handed over turn up in a dump, a receipt shows what you did.
- Do not dump or burn them. It is illegal in many places, and we did not review each one.
Where ScrapTrade fits
Scrap tires are not a payout product, and ScrapTrade is not a disposal service, so for ordinary worn tires a local hauler or recycler is the practical answer. The part that may suit a marketplace is sound casings and good used stock in volume, offered to verified traders in more than 50 countries. Listing carries no fee or commission, bids are negotiated live, and an accepted bid puts the buyer's 5 percent deposit into escrow. Businesses and individuals can sell once verified. We could not confirm that tires or casings can be listed, so write to cs@scraptrade.com.au before you rely on it.
What we could not verify
- Typical fees and payouts for scrap tires. We found none that were reliable.
- Licensing schemes for haulers in each place.
- What cash-for-tires advertisers actually pay.
- Whether ScrapTrade accepts tires or casings.
Frequently asked questions
Do scrap tire buyers pay?
Usually not for ordinary scrap tires, which tend to carry a fee. Sound truck casings and lightly used tires are the cases where a seller is paid, according to one source.
Who buys old truck tires?
Retreaders and casing dealers buy sound casings, and some dealers give credit and not cash.
How do I find a scrap tire collector?
Ask local tire shops, your municipal waste office or a retreader's association, and check licensing and receipts.
Is there a way to sell tire lots on ScrapTrade?
Verified sellers can list lots, and we could not confirm that tires are accepted, so ask support first.
Sources
- Ubersuggest keyword data, global, queried November 2026.
- Retread Tire Association and trade-press coverage of casing buyers and brokers, and Continental's ContiCasingAccount press release, as summarised in search results.
- Scrap tire disposal and recycling guides, as summarised in search results.
- ScrapTrade website, accessed November 2026.
Not legal advice. Hauler rules differ by place, and ScrapTrade benefits from scrap trading.