The proposed deposit, described by the waste industry as a “simple, fair, efficient and cost-neutral solution,” would be charged at the point of sale and returned to consumers who dispose of their vapes at approved drop-off points. Vapes are already accepted for return at stores where they are purchased and at designated recycling facilities, and they should not be placed in normal household bins, general recycling streams, or discarded as litter.
The push comes one year after the UK banned disposable vapes, a policy enacted largely because discarded vapes caused fires when thrown into general waste. Despite the ban, waste operators continue to find hundreds of thousands of improperly discarded vapes arriving at their facilities each week, according to Patrick Brighty, head of recycling policy at the ESA.
“Despite the ban, each week operators across the waste sector continue to see hundreds of thousands of carelessly discarded vapes arrive at their facilities hidden among other waste, which poses a major fire risk,” Brighty said. “Vapes discarded with other rubbish are also unlikely to be recycled, which is a chronic waste of the precious materials they contain.”
Brighty said the existing take-back infrastructure is underperforming because people lack incentives to use it. A deposit large enough to motivate proper disposal would close that gap, he said. The ESA added that the exact deposit amount would need to be determined through consultation before the government.
Biffa put forward £5 as its suggested figure. The exact amount would depend on policy development if the proposal advances.
Some vape retailers oppose the deposit idea. Marcus Saxton, chairman of the Independent British Vape Trade Association, said more work was needed to encourage vape recycling, but he argued a deposit scheme would benefit illicit sellers.
“Those retailers that aren’t abiding by their legal obligation won’t do this, it won’t be enforced, and ultimately consumers will go to that route to purchase which is a complete disaster,” Saxton said. He added that a number of illicit retailers are already either sourcing from the black market or failing to meet their legal obligations today.
Beyond the disposal problem, local authorities are pushing to close what they describe as a regulatory loophole. Some manufacturers now sell reusable vapes that match the size and price of popular disposable models, but include added USB ports and reusable tanks that allow them to be classified as reusable and skirt the ban.
The Local Government Association has called for those products to be banned as well. Councillor Dr Wendy Taylor, who chairs the LGA’s health and wellbeing committee, said enforcement must remain the focus for the second year of the disposable-vape ban.
“A year on, the volume of vapes in our bins has dropped, but industry has moved faster than regulation — the products causing fires in our bin lorries today are effectively the same disposables in a different shell,” Taylor said.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs did not directly respond to questions about whether the government would adopt a refundable deposit for vapes. Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds said the government had taken decisive action to address the harm caused by disposable vapes and that ministers are committed to going further.
Reynolds said ministers would hold retailers to account if they do not provide vape recycling bins, according to a department statement.