Where to Recycle Unwanted Electronic Goods
If you have frayed unused cables, fill up a Zero Waste Bag from Terracycle with other hard-to-recycle goods (to make in something else). Or recycled at your local depot.
Don’t send unwanted electronics to Africa. In Gambia, Bakoteh rubbish dump is the most toxic in the world, housed with all the electronic trash we are encouraged to send over there, when we’ve finished with it here.
Because the laws are not so strict there, workers suffer pollution and injuries from processing the used phones and laptops that companies try to ship over there, a kind of ‘environmental racism’.
Know that if you buy something from a store, by law you should be able to take back the old/broken version to be recycled.
For the most part, you can recycle electrical items at your local refuse centre (the average person buys 3 new items a year so that’s a massive amount of electrical waste, if not recycled.
Don’t donate goods as they could be faulty. Many shops now offer take-back schemes (ask in-store, you don’t necessarily have to buy a new item in order to do this). Some local councils even accept small electrical goods in clear bags from kerbside, if it’s convenient.
Items that can be recycled include:
- Anything with a plug or charger (or has a picture of a crossed-out wheelie bin) along with items that use batteries (jewellers can recycled small batteries).
- Garden tools (mowers, shredders)
- Personal care items (hairdryers, shavers, electric toothbrushes)
- Small appliances (kettles, blenders, toasters)
- Toys, games, lamps, radios, CD/DVD players
- Phones, printers, cameras, torches
- Smoke alarms and vacuum cleaners
- Christmas tree lights
All of these items are classed as WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment). So cannot go in normal refuse bins.
From January 2026, UK firms that until now have not contributed to the Environment Agency fund to collect and recycle electronic goods (washing machines, vacuum cleaners, radios) must now do so, by reporting how many items they sell to consumers, to ensure they pay their fair share.
Charities like Donate a PC often refurbish old hardware for reuse.
Love Tech Hate Waste (refurbished electronic goods)
Love Tech Hate Waste is a super website, where you can find refurbished technical products, to help create a circular economy for a sustainable future, and of course, items cost less too!
Founded by a group of businesses 15 years ago, this company has helped to stop tens of millions of tons of electronic waste going to landfill. The brand uses a unique restoration/refurbishment process, to help bring items back to a state where they can be enjoyed once more, to extend their useful life.
The range of items includes:
- Laptops – these are refurbished but in good working order. If you just require a basic model, some are just over £100, ideal for sending emails and basic surfing. Right up to professional-level office laptops.
- Computing – all items are backed by a 36-month warranty, from internal memory cards to tablets.
- Electronics – again backed by a 36-month warranty, these gadgets include refurbished photography gear, from cameras to headphones.
- Gaming – If you use consoles, choose ones that are refurbished, but be sure to turn them off often, and get outside in nature!
- Mobile Phones – again with 36-month warranties, here you’ll find top brand and models, refurbished to like-new, good or acceptable condition. From budget-friendly to smartphones.
