A quarter of a billion disposable vapes could be dumped before a ban comes in next year as most retailers are not fulfilling their legal duty to help consumers recycle them, according to new research.
The not-for-profit organisation Material Focus, which conducted the research, found that more than nine out of 10 vape producers and retailers seemed not to provide or pay for the return and recycling of single-use e-cigarettes.
High street brands and convenience stores were among the worst offenders, providing few or no recycling drop-off points, according to Material Focus.
The not-for-profit went into more than 700 retail stores looking for drop-off-points or asking if they could get their vape recycled, after seeing the products advertised for sale. Even though some say that they run takeback schemes shoppers were told that they could not take the products when they asked.
