Recolight criticises Environment Agency WEEE charging announcement
Recolight, the leading WEEE compliance scheme for the lighting industry, has criticised a decision by the Environment Agency (EA) to significantly increase WEEE charges.
Following a consultation, the EA yesterday announced that some annual WEEE charges they levy on producers would more than triple in 2019. Current EA fees are £210 for companies with a turnover below £1m, and £445 for companies with a turnover above £1m. The EA announcement revealed that they will increase both these charges to £750 from January 2019.
Commenting on the news, Recolight CEO Nigel Harvey said “It is disappointing that the EA did not take on board comments made during the consultation process. This increase will be particularly difficult for small and medium sized lighting companies.”
He added “The EA were presented with alternative, fully costed funding options that would have limited the impact on lighting businesses with a turnover below £1m. These alternatives would have spread the increase more fairly across the range of operators in the WEEE system. However, they were ignored, in favour of this excessively costly solution.”
The higher fees will only apply to producers based in England. Fees for those businesses registered in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland remain unchanged.
– ENDS –
About Recolight
Recolight is the leading UK WEEE compliance scheme for the lighting industry, taking on responsibility for its members’ WEEE compliance, giving their customers access to the UK’s most comprehensive free lamp collection and recycling service, and helping to ensure that as many lamps as possible are kept out of landfill.
Recolight’s comprehensive offering makes it the preferred WEEE scheme for the lighting industry, setting the standard for the sector. It is the only WEEE compliance scheme in the UK to provide integrated lamp and luminaire collection and recycling. It has the biggest UK-wide network of collection points for all WEEE lighting. As a result, since its founding in 2007, Recolight has funded the recycling of over 295 million lamps, LEDs and luminaires, more than all other UK WEEE schemes put together.
In 2012, Recolight won “Recycling and Waste Management Business of the Year” at the National Recycling Awards and Nigel Harvey, Recolight’s CEO, was recognised as LUX Person of the Year.
