Batteries do not belong in the household bin, and it is not just about landfill. Lithium cells are behind a growing number of fires in bin lorries and recycling plants.
Why the bin is not an option
A discarded lithium cell can be crushed or punctured in the back of a collection vehicle, and the resulting short circuit starts a fire. These fires are frequent enough that waste crews now treat any battery in a bin as a hazard.
Batteries also contain metals and chemicals worth recovering. Recycling recovers steel, zinc, manganese, lead and increasingly lithium, which is far better than mining more.
Where to take portable batteries
UK regulations require retailers that sell a significant quantity of portable batteries to accept used ones free of charge, whether or not you bought them there. That is why most supermarkets and many large shops have a collection tub near the till.
- Supermarket and large retailer battery collection points for AA, AAA, PP3, coin and button cells.
- Household waste recycling centres, which take most portable batteries and often car batteries.
- Your council's recycling guidance, which differs by area: some run kerbside battery collections in a separate bag.
- For built-in device batteries, the shop or manufacturer take-back scheme for electrical waste.
Before you hand them over
Tape both faces of coin cells and the terminals of any lithium battery with clear tape. This single step prevents the fires that collection systems are trying to avoid, and it takes seconds.
Keep damaged or swollen cells separate, tell staff when you hand them in, and never put a swelling pack in a standard collection tub with other batteries.
E-bike, e-scooter and power station batteries are generally treated as industrial or electrical waste, not portable batteries. Take them to a household waste recycling centre, a specialist recycler, or back to the retailer that sold them.
Car batteries
Lead-acid car batteries are almost entirely recycled, and household waste recycling centres accept them. Never store one on its side, and never drain it into a drain or soil. Handle it upright, keep it away from children, and wear gloves if it is leaking.
Recycled into what?
Lead-acid batteries are close to fully recycled into new lead and plastic. Alkaline cells are processed for steel and zinc. Lithium-ion cells are shredded, sorted and processed into a black mass from which metals are recovered.
The process is not perfect, but it is far better than the alternative, and the collection infrastructure in the UK is genuinely easy to use.
The short version
- Never put batteries in the household bin.
- Large retailers must accept portable batteries for free.
- Tape terminals before handing batteries in.
- Car and e-bike batteries go to a recycling centre, not a shop tub.