About
The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive came into force in the UK on the 1st of July 2007. It places obligations upon users and producers to handle their waste more carefully. No longer will this waste be placed into landfills. Targets have been set by the European Parliament for Member States to recover increased percentages of waste via recycling facilities and therefore reducing environmental pollution. The UK government have passed legislation (Statute 3289).
The legislation differs between B2C (Business to Consumer) and B2B (Business to Business) routes to market. B2C businesses are required to join or operate a “take back” scheme. B2B businesses can make their own arrangements as appropriate (3289, Regulation 9).
Fagerhult Lighting Ltd only supplies luminaires to other businesses which is therefore covered by the B2B regulations. To comply with the legislation all WEEE producers must have joined a registered Compliance Scheme by 15th March 2007. Fagerhult Lighting Ltd has joined the Electrolink producer compliance scheme, a division of Wastepack, a leading operator in waste management, and have rules which cater for companies who only deal in B2B routes to market.
Due to the longevity of our products, and to minimise any costs and risks which are incurred by our customers Fagerhult have decided not to charge a WEEE levy at the point of order. We believe it is not fair or practical for our customers to pay at the point of order as much as possibly 20–30 years ahead of disposal. There is also a risk of future changes in legislation which could affect the costs and how the waste is to be handled at time of disposal. As standard, Fagerhults method will embrace regulation 9 of the directive – the alternative arrangement. This will limit the initial costs and associated risks for our customers. It allows for two choices for our customers in the future when the luminaires become waste:
1.The customer can choose to appropriately dispose of the waste, via their chosen contractor for example. They may actually recover some costs in later years as commodities become more valuable.
2. The customer can choose to contact Fagerhult Lighting Ltd and request collection via our compliance scheme operator for unwanted luminaires. In this instance Fagerhult do reserve the right to charge a levy at that time as we did not charge at the point of order. This standardised approach will be reflected on all Fagerhult quotations, orders and terms and conditions.
Alternatively for customers who would prefer for Fagerhult to maintain full WEEE responsibility throughout the products lifecycle, via our compliance scheme operator, we have the flexibility to charge a levy at the point of purchase. We request that to assist us understand the levels of WEEE that is collected and recycled by our customers you fill in a log when you dispose of the waste. This basic information will be used to show compliance with the legislation and Government analysis for the targets set by the European Parliament. Fagerhult Lighting Ltd are not responsible for the lamps, these are the responsibility of the lamp manufacturer when they become WEEE. You are advised to contact the lamp brand manufacturer at the time of disposal for further information. From our early adoption of the environmental standard ISO 14001 through to materials and production methods used to create energy efficient luminaires, Fagerhult are committed to reducing our products environmental impact. We have underlined this commitment by joining the UK Green Building Council.