Producer compliance schemes (PCS) arrange for their members' waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) to be collected and treated, recycled or reused.
If you want to operate a PCS you must:
- apply to your environmental regulator for approval
- demonstrate that you can collect and arrange the treatment and recycling of your members' WEEE for at least three years.
Application forms are available from your environmental regulator.
Environment Agency: Operators of producer compliance schemes
NIEA: WEEE treatment facilities
In Scotland you should contact SEPA:
SEPA: Contacting SEPA
You may also need to register as a waste carrier or broker with your environmental regulator.
WEEE approved authorised treatment facilities (AATFs)
Approved authorised treatment facilities (AATFs) can recycle WEEE and issue evidence notes.
Authorised treatment facilities (ATFs) are licensed to recycle WEEE, but they cannot issue evidence notes. Evidence notes can only be issued by approved AATFs on their behalf.
What you must do
If you operate a PCS you must:
- register each of your producer members for each compliance period
- provide quarterly reports to your environmental regulator, including the amount of EEE placed on the market by your producers
- arrange for WEEE to be collected and transported to an ATF or AATF or approved exporter (AE) for treatment or recovery
- obtain written evidence from AATFs or AEs of how the WEEE has been treated or recovered
- provide evidence of WEEE that has been reused as whole appliances
- submit to your environmental regulator a declaration of compliance supported by evidence to show how you have paid for the treatment and recycling of your members´ WEEE
- submit an operational plan to your environmental regulator by 31 July each year
- provide your environmental regulator with records of the amount in tonnes of household and non-household WEEE recovered, treated and recycled
- cooperate with other PCSs.
Submit an operational plan
You must submit an operational plan to your environmental regulator covering the next three compliance periods by 31 July each year.
The plan must include:
- evidence that you have the money and technical expertise to operate the scheme
- details of how you plan to treat, recover and recycle household and non-household WEEE
- the designated collection facilities, AATFs and approved exporters you intend to use
- an estimate of the amount of WEEE you will handle.
There are different obligations for collecting household WEEE and non-household WEEE. Contact your environmental regulator for further information.
Contact your environmental regulator
In this guideline:
What are the WEEE Regulations?
Do the WEEE Regulations apply to your business?
Exemptions from the WEEE Regulations
Producers of equipment - What you must do
Producers of equipment - household and non-household WEEE
Producers of equipment - marking your products
Equipment distributors and retailers - what you must do
Your business’ electrical and electronic equipment
Operating a WEEE producer compliance scheme
Treating, recycling and exporting WEEE
WEEE that is hazardous waste
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) further information
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) legislation
