Your responsibility as a business

On this page ...

Any waste that comes from a commercial activity is business waste. If you use part of your home to run your business then any waste from that part is business waste.

What you must and must not do

You must:

• keep waste to a minimum by doing everything you reasonably can to prevent, reuse, recycle or recover waste
• sort and store waste safely and securely
• complete a waste transfer note for each load of waste that leaves your premises
• check if your waste carrier is registered to dispose of waste
• not allow the waste carrier to dispose of your waste illegally

You must not:

• burn waste
• take waste home for disposal in your domestic bin
• dispose of waste in street litter bins
• dispose of waste at domestic tidy tips
• Dispose of waste at a domestic recycling centre

Back to top

Waste transfer notes

For each load of waste you move off your premises, you need a waste transfer note or a document with the same information, such as an invoice. Your business and the business taking your waste both need to fill in the sections of the waste transfer note that apply to you, sign it, keep a copy for 2 years and show it to an enforcement officer from your local council or the Environment Agency if asked.

Waste transfer notes can be single notes for each load of waste removed or you can sign up to a contract for similar loads of waste to be removed regularly, for example one bin collected twice a week for 12 months. Failure to produce these notes is offence itself, please visit GOV.UK to find out further information on how to dispose of business or commercial waste.

Back to top