Recolight has criticised a decision by the Environment Agency (EA) to significantly increase WEEE (waste electrical and electronic equipment) charges.
Following a consultation, the EA has announced that some annual WEEE charges they levy on producers would more than triple in 2019. Current EA fees are £210 for companies with a turnover below £1 million, and £445 for companies with a turnover above £1 million. The EA announcement revealed that they will increase both these charges to £750 from January 2019.
Commenting on the news, Recolight CEO Nigel Harvey said, “It is disappointing that the EA did not take on board comments made during the consultation process. This increase will be particularly difficult for small and medium sized lighting companies.”
He added, “The EA were presented with alternative, fully costed funding options that would have limited the impact on lighting businesses with a turnover below £1 million. These alternatives would have spread the increase more fairly across the range of operators in the WEEE system. However, they were ignored, in favour of this excessively costly solution.”
The higher fees will only apply to producers based in England. Fees for those businesses registered in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland remain unchanged.
