Waste batteries that are carelessly thrown away with the general rubbish or mixed with other recycling can be dangerous and start fires – placing recycling workers at risk and damaging vital facilities.
You can stop used batteries from becoming dangerous by always recycling them for free at convenient locations across the country. These are most often located at your local Household Waste Recycling Centre or in larger shops, like supermarkets and DIY stores. Some local councils also offer kerbside battery or small waste electrical battery collection services, making it even easier.
If you enter your location into the box below, we’ll show you where your nearest battery recycling points are.
*The battery recycling point locator has kindly been made available to Take Charge by Material Focus
*Source: Source Material Focus 2021
Five top tips to stop waste batteries from becoming dangerous.
- Try to use rechargeable batteries instead of single-use ones where possible - this reduces the number of batteries that are discarded
- Try to sell or donate working, but unwanted, battery-powered electronic items instead of throwing them away
- Never put batteries in your general rubbish bin or recycle them with other recyclable materials
- If you can safely remove a battery from a product, the battery should always be recycled separately using a battery recycling point or collection service
- If you cannot remove a battery from an electronic product that no longer works, the product and the battery should be recycled together using a waste electricals recycling service
Some electronic devices, like newer mobile phones and tablets, contain batteries which are not easily removed. If they’re in working order, these items should be re-used or donated to charity to keep them in use for as long as possible, but once they are at the end of their useful life, they should be recycled only with other waste electrical items at your local Household Waste Recycling Centre, waste electrical recycling banks or, if you have one, a kerbside waste electricals collection service.
Some online services will actually give you money for your old mobile phones, tablets and laptops even if they’re no longer working – so check online first before recycling them.
How should I recycle my dead battery?
Unsure how to recycle your used batteries? Answer the questions below to find out what to do with them.
