LGA calls for producers to pick up costs for fridge capacity issues

An ongoing backlog of fridge reprocessing has led several councils to pause collections of both fridges and freezers.

The LGA said it wants to see producers fund alternative treatment or temporary storage where necessary and reimburse councils in full for the additional storage, staffing, transport and management costs caused by the disruption.

Councillor Arooj Shah, Chair of the LGA’s Neighbourhoods Committee, said: “Councils are working hard to keep services running, but it is deeply unfair to expect them to pay to store growing stockpiles or pass disruption on to residents.

“Producers must urgently get collections back on track and cover every additional cost councils face. The Government must ensure they meet their responsibilities and put proper contingency arrangements in place.”

The closure of Unimetals last year, a series of fires and the summer heatwaves have caused a backlog in the system due to reduced reprocessing capacity.

The issue means that local authorities, compliance schemes and reprocessors are having to explore temporary storage options while the backlog clears.

LGA research has identified dozens of councils which have already been forced to stop or restrict fridge and freezer collections, with more expected to be affected as the disruption continues.

Under the producer responsibility system for waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), producers are responsible for financing the collection, treatment, recovery and environmentally-sound disposal of household electrical waste through their compliance schemes.

Shah continued: “The backlog of defunct white goods is getting bigger by the day – they’re at risk of becoming a mountain.

“It is not right that residents who are trying to do the right thing can’t take old or broken appliances to their local recycling centre due to failures elsewhere in the system.”

The LGA has also called on the government to ensure producers meet these responsibilities and work with the industry to establish robust contingency arrangements.