How to dispose of old IT equipment in the UK

Many of us have a cable drawer, full of all the old chargers and leads for devices long gone. There’s almost certainly a long-forgotten smartphone, old tablet or dusty laptop hidden somewhere in any home in the country! It can be helpful to keep old devices as backups in case your daily driver fails unexpectedly or if you’re trying to find those old photos that you swore were backed up on some cloud, somewhere..

But many devices are at the end of their useful life, damaged or faulty and need to be disposed of. Any item that has the ‘wheely bin’ icon on it or its packaging is classed as electronic or electrical equipment, and that icon makes it clear that you shouldn’t just throw the device in your general waste – this is because it would contaminate the bin with dangerous chemicals or increase the risk of a fire breaking out in the bin, the collection vehicle or the sorting centre.

So how should these items be disposed of? Whether it’s an extension cord, a toaster, a mobile phone or a hairdryer, the rules are thankfully the same, and there are many convenient ways to dispose of waste electronic and electrical equipment (WEEE)

Check with your local council

You can check with your council for if they manage a WEEE disposal service. This might be in the form of drop-off points (whether in high-street locations or at local amenity tips) or collections. It’s common for WEEE collections to be offered alongside your normal scheduled refuse or recycling collection. Rules will differ but in general, you may be able to simply place your WEEE in a bag beside your normal bin, and the binmen will handle your WEEE properly as part of your regular collection. Again though – never put WEEE straight into the wheely bin!

Check with local retailers

Many high-street and online retailers will have a WEEE take-back scheme. These schemes are mandatory for businesses of a certain size or those that deal in certain electronics. What you can do is take your WEEE item to one of their stores, and they will handle the proper disposal process for you. For large or bulky items, retailers might offer a service where they will take your old item (like a fridge or washing machine) at the same time as they deliver your new one. Make sure to check the terms of each retailers scheme, as they may charge you for collecting your items and they are only required to take back the same kinds of items that they sell (so don’t expect to take your kettle to somewhere that only sells radios)

What about devices with sensitive information?

Some WEEE, like kitchen appliances or power cables, don’t have any risks associated with personal data. But for laptops, mobile phones, or other smart devices, you might be worried about your personal details or sensitive information getting into the wrong hands. Even though devices are built to be secure, it is still a possibility that a discarded device has the potential to be the window for someone to get access to your information and for you to be the victim of identity theft. How can this be prevented?

Proper Data Destruction

Data destruction means deleting all information on a device, and making sure that the data isn’t recoverable. The data is fully ‘destroyed’ and can’t be found again.

You can do this yourself – many modern devices will have a utility to securely erase them, ready for them to be resold, given away or disposed of. For other devices, you might have to use a third-party program to securely erase the device. If the device can’t work properly, this might make it difficult to be sure the data is erased – for example a phone with a broken screen makes it impossible to use the factory reset option in the settings. In these cases, using a service that can guarantee proper data destruction is the best method. This can be essential for businesses who require certification of data destruction for insurance.

Getting money back for old devices

You might be holding on to some items because while you don’t use them anymore, they’re in good working order and you know that they’re still valuable. In this case, why not try to get some money for your devices? One man’s WEEE is another’s second-hand device after all!

There are many trade-in services available. Some manufacturers even offer them directly. Be careful though – as the amounts offered by these services will vary heavily. It will depend on the condition of your item, its age, and most importantly its market value – how much can the trade-in service get from selling it on. In much the same way as buy-any-car services offer a quick sale but with lower offers, trade-in services are the same.

You can also try privately selling your devices, on online marketplaces or in person car-boot sales. This offers the potential for better money at the cost of your own time. It’s up to you which method you might prefer. Importantly, any trade-in or resale route provides the best result – getting the device back into someone’s hands so it can be used and enjoyed again, without putting pressure on resources, energy or our carbon footprint. Re-use is always better than recycling

What we can offer

Affinity Technology Solutions can help with a variety of the steps above. If you have old devices that you’re worried could be a data risk, we can securely erase them (even if they’re broken) to give you full peace of mind, as well as certified proof. We can do this for individuals and businesses alike.

We can also provide free collections of IT equipment for recycling, saving you time and possibly money as well. Collections are available in the Portsmouth area, including Southsea, Fratton, Hilsea, Cosham, Havant, Waterlooville and other nearby areas.

For a complete recycling solution, we can collect your items, keep your data safe, and even provide you with cash for your old devices! As we process and refurbish many items ourselves, we’re able to provide better rates than other trade-in services that rely on other third parties to handle goods.