Exchange for Change – the deposit return scheme (DRS) operator for England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland – has announced a DRS return handling fee “that reflects the complexities of the UK retail landscape”.
The fee is a payment made to retailers that operate a return point for consumers for beverage containers in scope for DRS. The purpose of them is to cover retailers’ costs involved in purchasing equipment for the collection and storage of beverage containers, along with associated costs such as staff training and rental value of the floor space.
Following an extensive consultation, the return handling fee will be 3p per container for manual return points. Meanwhile, at automatic return points, there are two tiers: one is 5p per container, for up to 225,000 in-scope items returned annually, and two is 1.3p per container, for annual in-scope returns in excess of 225,000.
Russell Davies, Exchange For Change CEO, said: “We have taken onboard a wide range of feedback provided by retailers, producers and trade bodies, and established a return handling fee that reflects the complexities of the UK retail landscape and ensures the scheme remains in balance.
“The UK’s retail landscape is unique in the world, spanning large supermarket chains, medium-sized franchises and a very high ratio of small and independent convenience stores comparative to other nations.”
He added: “This means the network of return points across the UK will be extensive, and the nature of collections will range from small convenience stores manually collecting and returning a small amount of containers, through to large multinational supermarket chains operating multiple reverse vending machines that collect several thousand containers each week at every store.”
The fee will be reviewed early next year prior to the scheme going live, and it will continue to be reviewed annually.
Commenting on the update, Travis Way, managing director at reverse vending machine organisations EcoVend, which is part of Reconomy Group, said: “For retailers, having greater clarity on the financial framework now will help support investment decisions and operational planning ahead of the scheme’s launch in 2027.
“It is encouraging to see a tiered approach that recognises the different realities facing retailers of varying sizes and return volumes. Reflecting the distinction between manual return points and reverse vending machine operators should help ensure the scheme remains practical and accessible across a diverse retail landscape.
He added: “The commitment to review fees before launch and on an ongoing basis will also be important. As businesses gain experience of operating within the scheme, it is vital that the fee structure continues to reflect real-world costs and supports high levels of participation, helping to deliver the strong return rates needed to create a more circular economy.”
[image credit: EcoVend]
