Donate Your Car

Make a difference to the life of a young person just by donating your car

Donating your car is an easy process, but the benefits are incredible. Your unwanted vehicle can be auctioned to help us to raise the vital funds we need to deliver our life-changing accommodation and education programs to help build brighter futures for young people who are at risk of experiencing homelessness.

The hassle free alternative to selling your car!

Looking for a quick and easy way to put your pre-loved car to good use? Donate Your Car and help Kids Under Cover prevent youth homelessness in Australia.

We will pick your vehicle up, auction it off, and the proceeds from the sale of your car will help fund Kids Under Cover’s work in preventing youth homelessness. Plus your vehicle donation is 100% tax deductible!

How does the Donate Your Car Program work?

Donating your vehicle to Donate Your Car couldn’t be easier! 

Your car is sold and the proceeds go to charity, supporting Kids Under Cover to end youth homelessness through innovative accommodation and housing solutions and life-changing encouragement to pursue study, training and employment opportunities.

Help us drive change for young people in need. Donate Your Car today.

We need just a few details from you to start the process – and we’ll be in touch soon to pick up your car. Once your car has been donated, it will be sold and the money made will help us to fundraise for our Studio Program and other initiatives that deliver positive outcomes for young people in need.

Five steps to giving your car to charity to help Kids Under Cover

Step one: Complete our donation form to tell us a bit about the car you want to donate.

Step two: Our team will get in touch to arrange the collection of your vehicle. We will collect your vehicle – you don’t even have to be there!

Step three: Your car will be sold at auction by our wonderful partners at Manheim Auctions.

Step four: Once the car has been sold the proceeds will go directly to funding Kids Under Cover’s programs – and we’ll send you a tax receipt so you can claim a deduction.

Step five: We’ll deliver studio accommodation and other supports to young people and help them to change the course of their lives. And you’ll feel great knowing you’ve helped them to build a brighter future.

100% of the proceeds from the sale of your vehicle will go towards helping young people stay connected to their families, education and community and stop them from experiencing homelessness.

Start the donation process now

You could be on your way to change lives. And what’s even better: Donating your car is 100% tax-deductible. The process is quick and hassle-free, too. Giving your car to charity to help Kids Under Cover is a great alternative to selling it or trading it in because it benefits you at the same time as helping disadvantaged kids.

Find out if your car is suitable for donation

Looking for a quick and easy way to get rid of your used car? But not sure if your vehicle is eligible for collection by Kids Under Cover? We accept cars, vans, motorbikes, caravans, trucks, buses, tractors, boats on trailers, and much more.

Your car will help us to end youth homelessess

The Donate Your Car program has helped raise over $16 million to date, providing funding for disadvantaged young people aged 12-25 to continue their education. Our studio program builds a one or two-bedroom unit in the backyard of a family or carer’s home to provide secure and stable accommodation for young people at risk of homelessness.

Kids Under Cover has helped over 4000 young people and awarded over 2200 scholarships. Right now we have more than 600 studios on the ground, housing 900-plus young people, helping them stay connected with their families, community and education.

About Kids Under Cover

Who benefits from your car donation? Young people aged between 12-25 years old who are at risk of becoming homeless; or who in some cases, have already experienced homelessness.

Donate Your Car is run by Kids Under Cover, a not for profit organisation that prevents youth homelessness in Australia. Kids Under Cover does that by providing studio accommodation in family backyards as well as education scholarships.

Kids Under Cover has been around since 1989, when the organisation was founded by well-known business person and philanthropist, Ken Morgan AO. Ken started as a car sales person before dedicating his life’s work to ending youth homeless. As the owner of multiple car dealerships around Melbourne, he was perfectly placed to set up the Donate Your Car initiative to fund Kids Under Cover’s incredible work.

Want to help end youth homelessness? Complete the form to donate your vehicle today!

Want to donate your car?

Make a difference to the life of a young person just by donating your car. It’s easy, tax-deductible, and you’ll help transform young lives.

Claim a tax-deduction for the value of your car

Your vehicle donation is 100% tax deductible. Once your car is auctioned off, you will receive a tax deductible receipt from us for the for the sale amount at auction. This will be sent to you within 8-12 weeks of submitting your donation.

If you think your vehicle has a current market value of over $5,000, you are eligible for a valuation by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). Your tax-deductible receipt will then be based on the ATO valuation amount.

Book in your vehicle collection

We accept and collect vehicles from a range of locations across Australia, including metropolitan Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane, Townsville, Adelaide, Perth, Darwin, and Hobart.

We can also collect regional vehicles depending on location.

Ready to donate your car?

Start the process today. Simply fill out our donation form to kick-off your car donation process.

Donate Your Car FAQs

Got questions? We’ve got answers. Here’s some more information to help you with your decision to donate your car to charity.

How do I fill out the Donate Your Car form?

How to fill out the Donate Your Car form:

  1. Have the contact information of the person organising collection of the vehicle ready, as well as the location of the car ready to be provided.
  2. Have the details of the (current or previous) registration ready – this includes the VIN*!
  3. Check if the car is starting, and upload photos of any extensive damage to your device so they can be submitted with the form.
  4. If you are having technical difficulties with the online form, you can instead complete this word version of the form and email to donateyourcar@kuc.org.au

*A 17 digit combination of letters and numbers with no I, Q or O included. I = 1, and O = 0.

All vehicles will be sold via public auction, any transferal of ownership is to be done with the advisement of your transport authority. Kids Under Cover do not take on ownership of any vehicles donated to us and are not the new owner of the vehicle. Please read our terms and conditions.

If you need more help with the form, you can contact our team. Call us on 1800 801 633 or email us at donateyourcar@kuc.org.au.

Can I donate my car if there is a recall for the model I own?

Please ensure your car does not have an active recall prior to deciding to donate your car and filling out the donation form. Please contact your vehicle’s manufacturer for details on how to fulfill an active recall for your car.

What kinds of vehicles will you accept?

We accept cars, vans, motorbikes, caravans, trucks, buses, tractors, boats on trailers, and much more. Have a different vehicle? Contact us to find out if we can accept your donation.

We are able to accept vehicles that have general wear and tear, however we’re unable to accept anything with significant damage – i.e. smashed windows, major panel damage, mould, missing parts etc.

We’re able to accept cars that aren’t running, as long as the battery/engine are both intact and nothing has been removed from the vehicle.

Where will you collect vehicles from?

We collect vehicles within metropolitan Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane, Townsville, Adelaide, Perth, Darwin, and Hobart.

We are able to collect cars from regional areas, however as these towing costs are higher we will ask if you are able to contribute towards the cost of towing your car.

If the car is driveable, there is also the option of dropping the car off at the closest Manheim auction site.

Why should I donate my car to Kids Under Cover?

100% of the proceeds from the sale of your vehicle will go to Kids Under Cover, a not for profit organisation that prevent youth homelessness.

It’s a quick, easy and free way to get rid of an unwanted vehicle.

Your vehicle donation is 100% tax deductible.

We guarantee that you’ll feel great about helping to prevent youth homelessness in Australia.

How long will it take for my vehicle to be picked up?

Once we have received your donation form, we will contact you within 3 business days to organise the collection of your vehicle. We then need to give our transport company at least 5 business days’ notice. All up, this process takes about one – two weeks.

If you require an urgent collection (as a result of a council notice, because you are moving overseas, etc.), please contact us after completing the form so we can organise an earlier date for you.

Do I need to be there while you collect my car?

No, you do not need to be present for collection. There is no need to stay at home that day or take time off work.

You can discuss the finer details (such as keys) directly with the towing company when they call you to confirm the collection closer to the date and let them know how they can gain access to the vehicle.

You may also nominate someone else as the point of contact if you prefer, such as a family member.

Who will pick up my donated vehicle?

All transport is organised by through our auction partner Manheim. They use a variety of fully-licensed and insured towing companies to pick up cars from across the country.

You will receive a courtesy call prior to the collection of your vehicle, that way you will know who to expect for your pick-up!

This call may be the day before the collection, usually late afternoon/ early evening, or, at the latest, by 10am on the morning of the collection. Please contact us if you have not heard from the transport company by 10am on the morning of your collection date so we can follow up.

How much money will my car sell for at auction?

All our donated vehicles are sold by Manheim’s experienced auctioneers at their public auctions. Please be aware that regardless of what you believe your car might be worth, the car is worth exactly what someone is prepared to pay for it at auction. This might be more than, equal to or less than you expect.

Will I receive a tax receipt for my car donation?

Yes – all vehicles donated to Kids Under Cover are tax deductible! You can expect to receive your tax receipt for the sale amount of the vehicle at auction within 8-12 weeks of submitting your donation so you can claim a tax deduction. This will be sent via Australia Post unless otherwise specified.

The date on your receipt will be the date Kids Under Cover received the sale proceeds from your vehicle.

The tax-deductible donation receipt must be issued in the name of the last/current registered owner of the vehicle.

What is the ATO valuation process?

If you think your vehicle has a current market value of over $5,000, you are eligible for a valuation by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). Your tax-deductible receipt will then be based on the ATO valuation amount.

If the ATO value your vehicle at less than $5,000, you are not entitled to a tax deduction based on their valuation and they will not issue you a Certificate of Valuation. For more information about the valuation process please call the Not-for-profit department at the ATO on 1300 130 428 or click here for more info about tax-deductible gifts on the ATO website.

You cannot receive an ATO valuation prior to deciding whether to proceed with the donation. The ATO only values already donated property.

What's the ATO valuation process?

  • Complete our donation form
  • Our team will contact you to discuss eligibility and attach specific paperwork to complete, as well as details about submitting the ATO application fee of $241 (also tax-deductible).
  • Complete these forms and send them in the mail to us.
  • We will arrange the collection of your vehicle, which will be stored at Manheim until it has been valued by the ATO. The ATO aims to have most valuations completed within a month.
  • Once we receive your hard copy forms, we will sign off on them and send them to the ATO on your behalf.
  • The ATO will value your vehicle and send you a Certificate of Valuation.
  • Once you have received your Certificate of Valuation, please email us a copy so we can issue your tax-deductible receipt based on the ATO valuation amount.

My vehicle has finance owing, can I donate it?

We cannot accept donated vehicles that still have finance owing. Please ensure your contract has been terminated prior to donating the vehicle.

In the event that a donated vehicle is found to have finance owing, you will be contacted by us to resolve.

Can I donate an abandoned car?

No – legally we are not able to accept abandoned vehicles. If there is an abandoned car in your street, please call your local council.

Does my car have to be registered?

No, we sell all cars unregistered at auction to avoid any transfer of ownership/notice of disposal paperwork. If your car is currently registered or expired, we will require you to contact your local road authority and cancel the registration. If you’re still driving the car, you can cancel the registration 1-2 business days after the car has been collected, or prior to the collection if that’s more convenient for you.

Want to chat to the Kids Under Cover team to find out more about how to Donate Your Car?

No problems, our friendly team can answer any other questions that you have. Call us on 1800 801 633 or email us at donateyourcar@kuc.org.au.