The indicator shows the quantities end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) within the framework of the decommissioning system in authorised recovery centres, and the success in reaching the target percentages of reuse, recovery and recycling of end-of-life vehicles.

An end-of life vehicle is an unusable or discarded vehicle that has reached the end of the road by way of its age, collision write-off or other reasons, and has become waste material according to the regulation governing waste management (Rules on the management of end-of-life motor vehicles, Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, No. 118/04). Because of hazardous substances contained, ELVs are classified as hazardous waste.

Rules on the management of end-of-life motor vehicles with the purpose of reducing the quantity of discarded vehicles by means of reuse, recycling and other forms of recovery are determined by the Decree on the manner, subject of and conditions for performing public utility service of the management of end-of-life vehicles (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, Nos. 18/03, 135/03, 32/04, 18/03, 135/03, 106/05, 32/06, 57/06 and 106/06) and the Rules on the management of end-of-life motor vehicles (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, No. 118/04).

In the Republic of Slovenia, the number of newly registered private vehicles has increased up to around 100,000 in recent years. The trend of increase of registered private vehicles is similar; from around 700,000 in the middle of the 1990s, the number has grown to more than 1,000,000 in the last years.

Between May 2004 and end of 2007, slightly above 24,000 tonnes of end-of-life vehicles were dried and disassembled in recovery centres, and by the end of 200, 21,000 tonnes of materials and supplies were collected from disassembly for the purpose of reuse, recycling and recovery. For most ELV, the 80% rate of reuse and recycling, and 85% rate of reuse and recovery were achieved. In 2008, slightly bellow 7,000 cars were decommissioned in Slovenia.

The system of management of end-of-life vehicles is ensured within the framework of the implementation of public utility service. One of the essential measures for the operation of this system is the introduction of the "certificate of destruction". The last owner of the vehicle that qualifies as an end-of-life vehicle according to the environmental protection rules and the rules on the management of end-of-life vehicles must submit the certificate of destruction upon deregistration of the vehicle. For the last owner the decommissioning service is rendered free of charge.

End-of-life vehicles are collected at collection points in four concession areas. From there, they are transported to treatment centres where they are dried and disassembled. The recollected hazardous substances and materials are then reused, recycled or recovered. In the period between May 1, 2004, when the system of performing public utility service of the management of end-of-life vehicle became operative, and March 2007, four temporary contractors performed this public utility service. In this period, the system did not recover the planned quantities; most of the recovered end-of-life vehicles were collected as so-called "old burdens" (i.e. end-of-life vehicles collected by local communities as abandoned vehicles whose last owner was not identifiable). In 2005, when the obligation of paying the cost of decommissioning of end-of-life vehicles put on the market before 2002 was transferred to the last owner, the quantity of end-of-life vehicles in the system deteriorated. The method of temporary deregistration of end-of-life vehicles by means of declaration of the location of the vehicle began to be abused. Another reason for fewer recoveries was illegal disposals and illegal scrap yards. Owing to these circumstances, intensified surveillance began in 2005 and scrap yards were gradually integrated into the recovery system. The essential measure that increased the number of vehicles collected for recovery was the elimination of the last owners’ payment liability for disassembly in December 2005. This resulted in a significant increase of end-of-life vehicles delivered for disassembly by the last owners in 2006. Since April 2007, this public utility service has been provided by three concessionaires who were selected by a public tender. However, the system of decommissioning still covers less ELVs than expected. The fact is, however, that other EU Member States are likewise faced with the problem that a large portion of ELVs is not included in the established decommissioning system. The European Parliament Report from 2007 on the current situation regarding the implementation of Directive 2000/53/EC of the Council and the Parliament on end-of-life vehicles in EU Member States summarises in the beginning the main reasons as follows:
- Export of second-hand cars before they reach their end of life is an important (and possibly growing) feature of the European car market,
- The legitimate second-hand trade masks some illegal activities, such as the export of
wrecked or stolen cars,
- A significant number of cars in some countries are being scrapped by unlicensed
operators who remove the economically desirable parts,
- Some cars are still abandoned rather than properly scrapped, and
- Some end-of-life vehicles are ‘garaged’ rather than scrapped.