If you want to trade the physical market, you should know that the best defence against opportunistic scrap dealers is to negotiate deals that tie scrap payments to a published index, and insist each invoice show a photocopy of the relevant data.
Of course, it is also prudent to check the dealers' relevant data now and again against an independent source of pricing information (another trade journal or a website such as
www.Propurchaser.com or
www.scrapindex.com/metal.html ).
Finally, make sure you are being paid for all your scrap. Indexed pricing works only if the weights are correct. Here are two ways to check:
1-Pre-weigh your scrap at your premises and check your numbers against the figures the dealer uses to calculate payment. If weighing each load is difficult, do it randomly, making sure the dealer does not know which loads are checked.
2-If weighing in-house is not practical, use a public facility. Make sure you choose the public scale (and change it occasionally). Randomly ask the driver to get weighed on his way back to his yard. Have the stamped, signed weigh ticket sent directly to you. Of course, the dealer will know this particular load has been weighed, so catching irregularities means looking for longer-term trends, i.e., checking if pre-weighed loads are generally heavier than those that do not go to a public scale.
Beware the dealer who promises to give you higher than market prices: this simply cannot be done -- at least not without cheating.
Companies Like Alcoa can buy you'r scrap at a very fair price.