The automotive industry is among the most resource‑intensive sectors in Europe. It accounts for around 19% of steel demand and 10% of plastic consumption, not to mention aluminium, copper, rubber and glass. In a country like Luxembourg, now home to over 670,000 inhabitants, sustainable management of resources and automotive waste has become a major issue.
Among the concrete solutions to reduce the sector’s environmental footprint, the reuse of automotive parts is gradually emerging as an obvious choice. Still sometimes perceived as a “second‑best” option, used parts actually fit perfectly into a modern, regulated and reliable approach to vehicle repair.
A used automotive part is an original manufacturer component removed from an end‑of‑life vehicle (ELV) intended for recycling. These vehicles are processed in approved centres following a strictly regulated procedure.
The first step is depollution: all potentially dangerous elements (fluids, batteries, airbags, filters) are removed. A non‑depolluted vehicle is legally considered hazardous waste.
Next comes dismantling. Technicians identify parts that remain fully functional, remove them carefully, test them and clean them.
Finally, each part is traceable: the make and model of the original vehicle, the year, mileage and tests performed are systematically recorded. This traceability ensures transparency and safety for the customer.
In Luxembourg, the end‑of‑life vehicle (ELV) sector is governed by law. A vehicle at the end of its life must be handed over to an authorised centre, which issues a certificate of destruction allowing deregistration.
As a result, more than 97% of ELVs are recovered in Luxembourg, either through part reuse or material recycling. The country therefore exceeds European targets.
To promote the use of used parts, Luxembourg insurer Foyer has partnered with GPA, a leading industrial actor in automotive recycling in France. GPA processes dozens of damaged or technically/economically irreparable vehicles every day and puts approximately 1,500 parts back into circulation daily.
In practice, when an insured vehicle is declared technically or economically irreparable, it can, where possible, be transferred to GPA. Parts still in excellent condition are recovered, tested and reintegrated into a short supply chain: they are used to repair vehicles of other policyholders, particularly in Luxembourg, via Foyer’s partner garage network.
A damaged vehicle can thus help restore another one. A local, circular and virtuous logic.
To encourage this responsible choice, Foyer provides several incentives, such as, a reduced deductible or the granting of gift vouchers and the parts used within this framework are also covered by a lifetime Foyer warranty, depending on contractual conditions.
Regulation strictly limits the categories of parts that may be reused. These mainly include:
Parts directly linked to active safety, such as braking or steering components, are excluded.
Reusing an automotive part delivers concrete environmental benefits.
Each used part is one less piece of waste to treat. It also avoids the extraction and processing of new raw materials. Some resources, such as copper, are currently under increasing global pressure, particularly with the rise of electrified vehicles.
From a climate perspective, studies show that reusing a part can avoid up to 80% of the CO₂ emissions associated with manufacturing a new one, depending on the component.
Re‑use logic is already widely adopted in many other sectors: second‑hand clothing, refurbished furniture, repaired household appliances.
“Why would a five‑year‑old bumper be any worse than a five‑year‑old car that continues to run perfectly?”
This deliberately provocative question illustrates the point well: changing mindsets and viewing automotive parts not as disposable consumables, but as durable goods.
In many European countries, such as France or Portugal, the use of used parts is already common practice. With its high ELV recovery rate and local initiatives, Luxembourg is fully aligned with this trend.
