WEEE Ireland, The Irish Compliance Scheme for Electrical and Battery Recycling

WEEE Ireland provide a nationwide collection service for WEEE and batteries in the Republic of Ireland with the exception of the following: Kerry, Clare, Monaghan, Cavan, Louth, Meath and Fingal County Council area. Our lamp collections are carried out in all 26 counties.

It is free to recycle ‘household-like’ WEEE with WEEE Ireland, this type of WEEE is also known as Business to Consumer (B2C) WEEE and includes anything with a battery or a plug that could be found in an average household.WEEE Ireland provide collections to retailers, wholesalers, health facilities, public and private businesses, schools and colleges, these collections are funded by producers.

All electrical retailers and wholesalers are legally obliged to accept WEEE back free of charge if a customer is making a similar purchase, this is due to their obligations under the EU WEEE Directive, this take-back service covers any ‘household-like’ appliance with a battery or a plug.

Take back in-store
If a customer is buying a new appliance they can avail of the a free WEEE take back service in-store.

• The old appliance does not have to be bought in the store where the new appliance is purchased.
• Returning the old item can be done in store on the day of purchase or at a later time if a receipt is retained showing that a similar item was purchased.

Home Deliveries
In the case of home deliveries, electrical retailers and their subcontractors are obliged to offer a free WEEE take back service on a ‘like for like’ basis.

• Retailers must provide 24 hours’ notice of a delivery in order to allow the customer to disconnect their old appliance.
• If 24 hours’ notice is not provided the retailer is required to return and collect the old appliance within 15 days.
• If the customer is given notice and they do not have their old appliance disconnected and ready for removal they can still bring this appliance back to the store as above.

No purchase necessary take-back and recycling centres:
Householders can bring WEEE to a number of electrical stores who offer a free, no purchase necessary, take-back service for household-like WEEE, householders can also recycle ‘household-like’ WEEE at Civic Amenity Sites (recycling centres) nationwide. Click here to find the nearest free WEEE recycling point to you.

Just click here and fill out the collection form accordingly.

Minimum collection requirements from a retailer is 4 pallets (approx. 20 large appliance) or 4 cages of small WEEE including TVs. Please call our Operations Department if you have limited space and the collection requirements are not convenient for you.

If you have large amounts of material, we can provide a free on-site collection.
'Household-like' WEEE – Please contact WEEE Ireland on 01 2135162
Commercial WEEE – Please contact KMK Metals on 057 9341634
Lamps & Fittings - Irish Lamps are the contractors we use for the collection of lamps and fittings across Ireland. They can be contacted directly to discuss collections on 059 8631377 or info@ilr.ie

Collections of batteries will be made within 20 working days. Collections of WEEE will be made within 10 working days of request. Our contractors will contact you to discuss an appropriate time before arrival. All time sensitive jobs should be notified to the above at least 5 working days in advance.

Material should be stored on a pallet, or in boxes or in the case or very large collections it may be possible to deliver special containers which can be supplied to a site. They should be stored in a convenient location for collection unless specified when arranging the collection. Please note that we cannot collect from underground carparks due to height restrictions and all WEEE must be brought to surface level. All contamination and packaging should be removed from the waste and material should be handled with care to prevent breakage. WEEE should be presented for collection intact with no part removed.

Click here to find a list of obligations that retailers have. Retailers can be audited by their local authority or the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) and can be subjected to fines if not compliant. Please call WEEE Ireland if you wish to discuss anything listed.

Large domestic appliances – washing machines, cookers, dishwashers etc
Cooling appliances – refrigerators, freezers, water coolers etc
Display equipment – CRT, LCD, plasma, televisions and computer monitors
Small domestic – toasters, kettles, electrical tools, toys, keyboard etc
Lamps – fluorescent tubes, low-energy light bulbs (CFLs)
Battery – rechargeable and single use.

The Newspread waste battery service is no longer available. Retailers can now book a battery delivery or collection by emailing WEEE Ireland on  operations@weeeireland.ie

Yes, from 26th of September 2008, each retailer must provide for free in-store take back of waste batteries of equivalent type as the batteries supplied by him or her. Retailers are required to take back waste batteries from members of the public free of charge on a one for zero basis (no purchase necessary). Retailers who take back batteries are obliged to display the relevant information notices. For a sample notice please follow this link »

You can order battery boxes for your store via our online form here. Battery boxes are delivered flat-packed in packs of 10.

WEEE Ireland has responsibility for the collection of WEEE and waste batteries in certain counties throughout Ireland. Please view the map below to see if your store is within our designated collection area:
Batteries map »

WEEE Ireland have a minimum collection requirement of 10 full battery boxes (shoebox size) or 1 full drum. This is the equivalent to approximately 50kg of waste batteries.

As WEEE Ireland are an environmental company providing free collections of batteries we have these minimum requirements in order to reduce our carbon footprint and maintain a cost-effective service.

If you do not meet the minimum collection requirement of 10 battery boxes, you can drop off your full boxes to your local Civic Amenity Site/Recycling Centre. You will be able to find your local CA site via our interactive map here. Alternatively, you can recycle your boxes at one of our WEEE Ireland Collection Days, you will be able to find the next collection day near you here. If you require further information about how to recycle your boxes, you can email us on operations@weeeireland.ie

Battery box collections/ deliveries can take anything from 1-20 working days, depending on your location.

You will find information about how to store batteries safely on your premises via our battery safety pdf here.

Yes, as well as retailers, WEEE Ireland provide the battery box collection/ delivery service to all businesses, public facilities, schools and colleges in our area. If you would like to get battery boxes collected or delivered to your workplace you can request this via our online form here.