What is WEEE? (Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment)
Over one million tonnes of waste electrical and electronic equipment goes to landfill every year and most electrical and electronic waste is toxic, which can have long-term implications for the environment.

The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations (WEEE Regulations), which came into force on 2nd January 2007 and implemented 1st July 2007, aims to reduce this waste and increase recovery and recycling rates.

WEEE makes producers, and the distributors of own brands such as Newlec, responsible for financing the collection, treatment and recovery of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment.

Under the terms of the Regulations, Newey & Eyre is professionally qualified and registered to help its customers comply with the WEEE regulations and recycle all Newlec products in a compliant and efficient way.

What does WEEE apply to?
There are ten categories of WEEE including:
· Large household appliances
· Small household appliances
· IT and telecommunications equipment
· Consumer equipment
· Lighting equipment
· Electrical and electronic tools
· Toys, leisure and sports equipment
· Medical devices
· Monitoring and control equipment
· Automatic dispensers

However, certain types of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) are exempt from the regulations. This includes equipment that is part of another type of a product that is outside the scope of the WEEE Regulations together with filament lamps and household lighting.

If a product is covered by the Regulations it will have a wheelie bin logo (as shown below) printed on it or if very small, the packaging it is contained in.

Invariably, the logo will have a black line underneath it. This indicates that the product was manufactured after 13th August 2005, when all products subject to the Regulations had to be labelled.



*This option is only used when minimal space is available on a product or packaging:



What's the difference between household and business products?
It is important to distinguish between a household and business product because the methods of disposal are different.

One of the most common ways to differentiate between the two is to consider how they would have been disposed of before the Regulations - if the product would have ended its life in a domestic wheelie bin it is household, whereas if it was destined for a commercial skip, it is business.

Newlec products, as an exclusive brand of Newey & Eyre, are classified as business products as they are directly supplied into the professional rather than domestic market.

A domestic product can usually be taken to a civic amenity centre and recycled free-of-charge - the manufacturer pays the council for the service. If a replacement appliance is being purchased, the distributor selling it is obliged to take the old product and deal with the recycling.

For a business product the end user needs to contact the manufacturer and find out whom it has appointed as its independent contractor to manage its WEEE compliance.

How do I recycle Newlec products?
Newey & Eyre is responsible when a Newlec product with a wheelie bin symbol becomes waste. In addition, when a new Newlec  product with this symbol  is  purchased  as  a replacement,  Newey  &  Eyre  will  recycle the old product, regardless of its brand, free-of-charge.

To ensure this occurs, all manufacturers  including Newey & Eyre, are legally obliged to join a WEEE compliance scheme, which is an independent contractor  who  manages  WEEE compliance issues on behalf of its members.

Newey  &  Eyre has joined the largest  manufacturer  led business-to-business  compliance  scheme, namely B2B Compliance  Ltd,  to help communicate  with  customers  and manage compliance.

Newey & Eyre Registration Number: WEE/DH0116XU

What is my responsibility?
As a commercial end user of a Newlec product you are legally responsible  for  its  recycling  and  for the transferring of  the waste  to  someone or an organisation  that  is professionally qualified and registered to do so. But you are not obliged to use Newey & Eyre's compliance scheme.

Newey & Eyre's Recycling Service
Any  Newlec  item which carries the WEEE symbol,  can  be recycled  for  free, as can any similar product  it  replaces, regardless of the brand.

Please note, for legal reasons, some branches cannot offer the service, so please check before returning waste products. Your local branch will advise you of the service available locally.

By using Newey  &  Eyre's  recycling  service,  available  at selected  branches, you  can  be  assured of a professional, legally compliant and complete recycling service which not only meets your WEEE recycling obligations but also ensures that we take full responsibility for our own WEEE obligations.

Commercial WEEE Recycling Service
Newey  &  Eyre  also  offers  a  commercial WEEE Recycling Service for non-Newlec items.  Please ask at your local branch for further details.

Further Information
Newey & Eyre has produced a Guide to the WEEE Regulations and Waste Recycling Services for Customers. Ask at your local Newey  &  Eyre  branch  for  a  copy, call 0800 783  6909  or email legislation@hagemeyer.co.uk