Lamp Recycling

Business lamp recycling made simple – join the Recolight collection network and book free collections online

Businesses across the UK replace lamps every day – in offices, warehouses, retail, schools, hospitals and on construction sites. The challenge is making lamp recycling easy, compliant, and consistent across teams and locations. Recolight helps organisations do exactly that, with a national collection network, an online booking system, and clear guidance on storage and paperwork.

If you manage lighting maintenance, run a facilities team, deliver electrical projects, or operate an electrical wholesale branch, this page explains how to set up a straightforward lamp recycling process and sign up as a Recolight Collection Point.

Quick answer – how do businesses arrange lamp recycling with Recolight

To arrange lamp recycling, businesses can apply to join the Recolight collection network and become a Collection Point. Once approved, collections are booked through RecoWeb, Recolight’s online system, which also supports audit trails and free WEEE consignment notes. 

Why choose Recolight for lamp recycling

Businesses choose Recolight because it combines compliance support with a practical collection network.

  • Recolight offer free lamp collections and recycling for business lamps covered by the WEEE Regulations. This service is free because Recolight is a not-for-profit WEEE Compliance Scheme, funded by our Members, the lighting industry. A structured process for joining the network as a Collection Point and booking through RecoWeb
  • Service Level Agreement designed to support duty of care compliance and keep the service free
  • Strong options for wholesalers to support customers and promote their branch free of charge via the map
  • Recolight is active in lobbying to make sure that the WEEE regulations and associated legislation are right for the lighting industry and its customers.
  • Highly knowledgeable responsive team, who can help with all questions and queries
Small volumes of lamps for collection

Who this lamp recycling service is for

Taman, which promises to ‘put light where it’s needed and and darkness where it belongs’, aims to redefine how outdoor illumination is planned.

Recolight’s collections are designed for organisations handling waste lamps from business activity, including

  • Facilities and estates teams managing planned maintenance and relamping
  • Electrical contractors working across multiple client sites
  • Building owners and property managers coordinating retrofit projects
  • Electrical wholesalers who want to offer customers a free lamp recycling route and increase footfall through added services 

If you want a repeatable process that helps people on site do the right thing without extra admin, joining the network is the most effective starting point.

Why lamp recycling needs a business-first approach

Commercial lamp waste is different to household recycling. You need a solution that supports

  • Duty of care compliance and clear responsibilities
  • Safe, practical storage on real working sites
  • A consistent booking process so collections are not missed
  • Paperwork and reporting that stands up to audits and client requirements

Recolight’s Service Level Agreement and collection process are built around these needs, helping both Recolight and Collection Points meet legal obligations and keep the service free.

Thorlux Lighting’s fleet of delivery vehicles are all now powered by hydrotreated vegetable oil biofuel.

Join the Recolight collection network

The main goal for most organisations is simple – make lamp recycling easy enough that it actually happens, site after site.

Step 1 – Apply to become a Collection Point

RecoWeb is used for applications for new services and for organisations registered in the Recolight network as a Collection Point to book collections. Simply enter your waste types and quantities, and the system will provide the most appropriate solution for you. Collection Points receive system emails to confirm applications and bookings for their records.

Once you are set up, you can manage collections in a consistent way without relying on ad hoc arrangements and receive updates and confirmations in a timely manner.

Step 2 – Use RecoWeb to book collections and keep records

RecoWeb is Recolight’s online booking and reporting system. It provides a complete audit trail for collections, and WEEE consignment notes can be generated and downloaded free of charge through the platform.

Users can also download reports containing collection data, including collection dates, tonnages, and associated carbon emissions.

This is particularly helpful if you manage multiple sites, need reporting for clients, or want a single standard process that can be followed across teams.

Step 3 – Follow the Service Level Agreement to keep the service free

Recolight’s Service Level Agreement is in place to help ensure duty of care compliance and to keep the service free. 

In practice, it sets expectations around how waste lamps are stored, managed, and presented for collection.

Extensive guidance can be found on the website to help collection partners manage their site and associated paperwork for WEEE collections

Service options that fit how businesses work

Businesses generate lamp waste at different rates. Recolight provides options for both ongoing activity and short-term projects.

  • For sites with lower volumes, there are service options designed for organisations collecting less than 1000 lamps (or 200kg) in 6 months, including container leasing, free collection and recycling, and free consignment notes 
  • For one-off or short-term requirements, there are options designed for project sites, again including free collections, recycling, and paperwork support 

This flexibility helps you set up lamp recycling in a way that matches your operations, rather than forcing every site into the same pattern.

Following the successful establishment of Thorlux Lighting parent FW Thorpe’s first woodland creation project in Wales, where 180,000 trees were planted across 215 acres, the Group has continued its long-term investment in carbon sequestration and environmental improvement with the creation of The Brook Woodland in Herefordshire.

Lamp recycling for wholesalers

Mountain Warehouse Cork Shoplight

If you run an electrical wholesale branch, offering lamp recycling can be a practical customer service that also improves visibility.

When you sign up as a Recolight Collection Point, you can choose to be added to Recolight’s collection point map, helping you

  • Offer a free lamp recycling service to customers
  • Promote your business to potential new customers who search for local drop-off options 

It is a simple way to make your branch more useful to contractors and facilities teams in your area.

Use the drop-off network when it suits your business

Some organisations prefer drop-off for smaller quantities, remote sites, or quick clear-outs. Recolight provides a UK-wide map showing free drop-off options for lamps.

Drop-off can sit alongside collections, giving you a practical fallback when a site is not ready for a booked collection.

Getting lamp recycling right on site

The quickest way to reduce breakages, contamination, and avoidable problems is to standardise what happens on site.

Recolight provides guidance on managing your site and collections, including the importance of storing waste lamps correctly to support free collection and recycling and to avoid contamination and excessive breakages. 

A simple internal checklist usually works well

  • Store waste lamps only in the agreed container or storage area
  • Do not mix lamps with general waste, packaging, or unrelated electrical items
  • Keep the storage area accessible for collection or internal movement
  • Brief teams on what to do if a lamp breaks

This is the practical backbone of effective lamp recycling.

Fagerhult goes net zero

Paperwork and compliance without the headache

Mountain Warehouse Cork Shoplight

For many businesses, lamp recycling fails because paperwork feels unclear or time-consuming.

RecoWeb helps by storing free WEEE consignment notes and by keeping a record of collections through its audit trail. 

That means less chasing, clearer records, and easier reporting back to clients and stakeholders.

Recolight support

Recolight has a dedicated Collection Point support team of experts to handle queries regarding waste types, containers, collection data and collections. If you’re unsure which service is right for your business, they can help you find a solution.

Lamp recycling FAQ for businesses

How do we join the Recolight collection network

Apply through RecoWeb, which is used for new applications and for organisations registered as a Recolight Collection Point. 

If you are signed up as a Collection Point, you book through RecoWeb, Recolight’s online booking system. 

Yes. RecoWeb provides an audit trail for collections. 

Yes. WEEE consignment notes can be downloaded from RecoWeb free of charge. 

Follow the Recolight Service Level Agreement, which is designed to support duty of care compliance and keep the service free.  This means requesting your container to be collected when it’s full and ensuring waste is stored correctly.

Yes. Wholesalers can sign up as Recolight Collection Points and choose to be added to the collection point map, offering free lamp recycling to customers and promoting the business locally. 

Use the Recolight drop-off network when it fits, and combine it with collections where appropriate. 

Recolight periodically sends e-newsletters providing service updates and information you may need to be aware of.

Recolight is a not-for-profit company, so our focus is on doing the right thing for the environment. We’re able to provide emission data for your site, and discuss ways of minimising the impact as part of your Scope 3 emissions.

Start your lamp recycling set-up

If you want a consistent, business-ready approach to lamp recycling, the best next step is to apply to join the Recolight collection network and set your sites up as Collection Points. Once approved, you can manage bookings, paperwork, and records through RecoWeb, and use the drop-off network when needed.