Weee = Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2006 applies to water coolers in the workplace.
Have you noticed an additional charge on your water cooler invoice on top of your normal rental charges? If so it’s likely to be a ‘contribution‘ towards ‘end of life disposal’ but if the water coolers don’t belong to you then why should you contribute to their disposal? Well put simply, you shouldn’t.
Non Historic WEEE
End of life disposal of vending machines and all other electrical equipment supplied on or after the 13th August 2005 is the responsibility of the original producer, irrespective of whether a new machine is supplied or not.
Most producers of electrical equipment now seek to charge a ‘WEEE Levvy’ on the sale of all new equipment to help finance its end of life disposal. This, in principle is an acceptable process but many water cooler companies have chosen to also add these charges to clients accounts on ‘rented machines’ which some may see as unfair practice.
Please read the following statement which applies to all electrical appliances which we provide on a rental basis.
A Statement by The Thirst Alternative Limited on Water Cooler Rentals
Water Cooler Rentals – We do not charge for the disposal of our rented water coolers. As the machines belong to us, we are responsible for any payments to necessitate safe disposal .-Don’t be fooled by paying for a levy on any rented electrical equipment that’s not your responsibility.
According to the regulations set out in the WEEE Directive 2006 it is the responsibility of the owners of the equipment to dispose of any electronic equipment at the end of it’s useful life.
Some water cooler companies choose to pass this financial burden onto the end users by adding “Environmental Charges” or “Re-cycle Levys” to rental invoices.
We have decided not to ‘pass on’ any WEEE related charges, for rented machines for the following reasons.
As stated clearly above, if you rent your machines, then it’s not your responsibility to make make any WEEE arrangements whatsoever.
A levvy paid by you now, does not guarantee that collection and disposal from the producer will be available at a later date in time. This could leave you exposed to the risk of paying twice.Your electronic equipment may well have continued use or indeed a re-sale value and WEEE only applies to the final disposal. You may have paid any WEEE unnecessarily.
Most Levvy’s being charged by producers appear to be significantly higher than the actual cost’s of collection and paying a WEEE levvy to producers may not represent the best commercial solution available to you.
Learn more on the U.K Governments webpage HERE.
In short – If you are buying electronic equipment you should decide whether the WEEE charges quoted are your best economic solution. If you are renting machines it is advisable to ask any potential supplier if they are likely to charge you for this.