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In association with the Catering Managers Association of Great Britain and the Channel Islands
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The Commercial Refrigeration Forum (CRF), an alliance of leading refrigeration companies, is offering advice and guidance to end users of refrigerated catering equipment on their responsibilities in relation to the WEEE Directive.
“Disposal of refrigeration equipment is particularly complex because it is covered by both the WEEE Directive and regulations pertaining to the disposal of ozone-depleting substances,” explains CRF Chairman Melvin Ness. “For these reasons it’s vital that end-of-life refrigeration equipment is channelled through the appropriate waste stream.
“All CRF members have signed up to a code of conduct that will deliver these requirements and it is our intention that the CRF ‘marque’ becomes synonymous with peace of mind for our members’ customers,” he continued.
When customers are considering buying a new refrigeration product they have the option of taking responsibility for disposal themselves or paying extra for the supplier to retain that responsibility.
“This is an area where there is need for total clarity and transparency, rather than trying to hide the details in the small print of the Terms & Conditions,” Ness asserts. “If our members are to retain responsibility for disposal they will make it clear there will be an additional charge for this.
“Similarly, if the customer prefers to take on that responsibility we will explain the implications of this, insofar as they have to arrange collection through an accredited waste contractor and will have to be able to prove that the equipment was disposed of in compliance with the regulations.
“There will also be occasions where a customer asks a member company to take back a pre-August 2005 product that is not covered by the regulations when buying a similar product. In imposing a charge for this, our members are obligated to publish their prices for the disposal of such ‘historic WEEE’, based on the size of the product, to maintain a high level of transparency for the customer,” Ness explains.
Reader enquiries: Melvin Ness, Commercial Refrigeration Forum, email: Melvin.ness@btinternet.com
