Millions of people in England and beyond now own mobile phones. Only a few people use landlines, and it’s likely this trend will continue.
So it’s really important to look at how and where to recycle the old phones, to save them polluting the planet (leaching mercury, lead and cadmium into the soil) and creating fire hazards at landfills.
Read our posts on sustainable smartphones, biodegradable phone cases and ethical mobile phone services.
Buy Repairable Smartphones
The best solution long-term is to buy a repairable smartphone. The Right to Repair Act now means that companies must supply instructions and repair kits, but these can still be expensive.
The new ‘brand of greener’ smartphones still need work (there is not one guaranteed free from animal products), and they still involve mining gold, copper and silver.
But brands like Fairphone at least are working on both vegan certification and are using Fair Trade and recycled parts. All their phones are super-easy to repair, and you can send old phones back for recycling, when time comes to replace.
Donate Unwanted Phones to Charity
Many small charities accept mobile phones (and other small electronic goods) for recycling. They can then sell them to companies that pay them for the metal and other parts, to raise funds.
Recycling for Good Causes lets you donate mobile phones to your favourite causes (for medical charities, choose ones that help humane medical research):
If you have a large range of items, or would like to collect more over a period of time then our Recycling Project is for you. We will send you a sack (free of charge) to put your items in and when it is of an acceptable weight (10-30kg), just give us a call and we will arrange collection free of charge at a convenient time for you.
It’s that simple and there is no long term commitment. You can donate a much wider range of items in our Recycling Project sacks:
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- Jewellery & Watches (in any material even if damaged or broken)
- Currency – Any coins or banknotes, UK & foreign (even if out of circulation)
- Mobile Phones
- Cameras (old film, digital and video)
- Stamps (Loose, single, albums, first day covers, presentation packs)
- Gadgets (Sat-Navs, Ipods, MP3 players, games consoles, games & accessories).
Fill in the form or call us for more details.
0800 633 5323
You can also donate phones to Hubbub, just sign up for a Freepost envelope (the phones are then donated to people on low incomes, with 12 months of free minutes). This organisation will wipe iPhone or Androids (chargers not needed), the site has info on how to remove your Sim or Apple card.
Sell Unwanted Mobile Phones
If your phone is a high-grade one that could earn you some cash, you can send unwanted phones to companies that will give you money in return:
- Grade Mobile accepts phones, which they then clean of data (and fingerprints!), then sell them refurbished at up to 60% of the new price.
- Envirofone also lets you recycle old phones for cash. Again, you can buy their quality refurbished phones (and tablets) at a fraction of high street prices, with 12-month warranties.
Phone Accessory Recycling Boxes
It would be far easier if communities had mobile phone recycling boxes, instead of making people send them off in envelopes. As there are likely millions of unwanted or broken phones in drawers across England.
TerraCycle is an organisation that sometimes offers free community recycling boxes (sponsored by industry) or more often makes a one-off charge, to recycle ‘difficult-to-recycle’ items. These are sent off to make into industrial goods like piping.
It offers a community recycling box for phone accessories (phone cases and screen protectors). Your community, office, school or council could pool money to buy one (£100 to £200, depending on size).
This is then placed in a community centre, shop or school for people to drop off unwanted phone accessories. Then sent off, using the prepaid label, for recycling.
It’s a great way to rid your town or village of phone accessory waste forever (like an amnesty). You can do the same for other grouped items, this company can recycle anything! Then next time, you can buy a biodegradable phone case!
