Where Do Donated Electricals Go After Collection?
Once the van pulls away from your door, your old gadgets go back to our warehouse. There we sort them by hand and pass on what can be used again. Most of the working electricals you give us go on to be used by someone else. Here is what happens after you donate your electricals with our free doorstep collection, stage by stage.
- Collected from your door
- Sorted by hand
- Most used again
- Money to your charity
The journey
From your doorstep to a new home
Left out on your doorstep
On your collection day, you leave your electricals out by 7am in tied bags or boxes a driver can lift. You don’t need to be at home.
The evening before, we email you an estimated arrival window and a link to follow the driver on the day. Packing tips are on how do I donate my electricals?
Back to our warehouse
Our drivers collect from homes all day. Then they bring everything back to our warehouse, where the day’s donations are unloaded together.
Your gadgets travel with everything else you gave us, such as books or clothes, in the same van. Nothing is passed on straight from the van. Every bag and box goes through the same checks first.
Sorted by hand
Every bag and box is opened, and every item is looked at by hand. Our team sorts the electricals by type and condition. Phones and tablets go together. So do laptops, keyboards and mice, kitchen gadgets like kettles, toasters and blenders, and hand power tools like drills.
It’s careful work, and it’s what makes sure each gadget goes somewhere it will actually be used. Anything that can’t be used again is separated out at this stage.
Passed on to be used again
The gadgets that pass our checks are passed on to be used again. A laptop that was gathering dust in a drawer becomes someone’s work computer. A blender you replaced makes someone else’s breakfast. Most of the electricals we collect go on to a second life like this, often at a price far below new.
Before you give away a phone, tablet or laptop, please clear your data and sign out of your accounts. How to do that is on old phones, tablets and laptops.
Why we ask for working items
We only collect electricals that are in working order, because that’s what gives them the best chance of being used again. The more of each box that works, the more it raises for your charity.
Check the list of what electricals we can and can’t take before you pack. It covers what condition is fine, and the items we can’t collect.
The money goes to charity
Passing on the electricals pays for the collection, the sorting and the transport. A large percentage of the proceeds goes to the charity you chose when you booked: RSPCA, Action for Children, Together for Short Lives or Advance. You can also choose to plant trees with Ecologi.
Read more on who do my electricals help? and on how your donations support the RSPCA.
Why this journey matters. Every gadget used again is one that didn’t need to be made new, and didn’t end up in a bin. We explain what that saves on how donating electricals helps the planet. What happens to electricals that are thrown away is on why shouldn’t electricals go in the bin?
The bigger picture
What it all means for the environment
We want electricals used again for what they were made for. Your unwanted gadgets don’t need to sit in a drawer or go in the bin. They can have a new owner.
Gadgets in drawers
Material Focus found that UK homes are keeping 880 million unused electrical items. That is about 30 per household, up from 20 four years earlier. Many of them still work.
Electricals in the bin
According to Material Focus, UK households throw away 103,000 tonnes of electricals every year. Every working gadget you donate is one fewer in that pile.
Less made new
Our own estimate is that every kilo of electricals used again, instead of made new, saves around 5 kg of CO2e. See what your clear-out could save on the green calculator.
Sources: Material Focus, Electrical Waste: Challenges and Opportunities (media release, 28 March 2024), 2023 figures. CO2e saving: Anglo Doorstep Collections estimate.
You can put your working electricals, and many other household items, back into use. Book a free doorstep collection and choose the charity your donation supports.
Questions
Questions about what happens to donated electricals
Can I donate electricals that don’t work?
No. We only collect working electricals, because those are the ones that can be used again. See what electricals can I donate? for the full list.
Should I clear my phone or laptop first?
Yes. Please back up what you want to keep, then clear your data and sign out of your accounts before you donate. The steps are on old phones, tablets and laptops.
Do I need to be at home?
No. Leave your electricals out by 7am on your collection day and the driver will pick them up.
Where do you collect?
We collect from homes across most of England and South Wales. Enter your postcode when you book, or see areas we cover. In Yorkshire, see electrical donations in Yorkshire.
More answers are on our frequently asked questions page.
Ready to donate your small electricals?
It’s free, you don’t need to be at home, and you choose the charity your donation supports.