Full WEEE obligations commence on 1st July 2007
From July 1, business and household consumers buying electrical products, from computers, through to mobile phones and televisions, will be offered take back of old products. When businesses produce waste you have responsibilities. These can include complying with the requirements of the Duty of Care, and if your producing hazardous waste, you may need to register as a producer under the Hazardous Waste Regulations.
The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) legislation introduces responsibilities for businesses and other non-household users of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE). This includes businesses, schools, hospitals, and government agencies, when they dispose of their electrical waste.
You need to ensure that all separately collected WEEE is treated and recycled. Whether the business or the producer of the (EEE) pays for this depends on the circumstances:
Business EEE from products put on the market after 13 August 2005
EEE producers are responsible for financing the collection, treatment, recovery and disposal of the EEE that they supply to businesses. The directive allows producers and businesses to agree alternative financing arrangements. This is a commercial decision and is likely to form part of the normal negotiating processes for supply contracts in the future.
Business EEE from products put on the market before 13 August 2005
Different arrangements apply for WEEE arising from products put on the market before 13 August 2005 (known as historic WEEE). If historic WEEE from businesses is being replaced by new equivalent products, the EEE producer is responsible for financing the collection, treatment, recovery and disposal when supplying the new products. In other cases, for example where the historic WEEE is not being replaced, the end user (the business) has to pay.