UK’s mobile recycling market is still expected to grow
Wednesday, November 26, 2014 - 10:24:55
Although just ten years ago almost no old mobile phones were recycled in the UK, the last decade has seen an entire industry emerge around the collection and reconstitution of unwanted handsets, generating hundreds of millions of pounds a year for the economy as a result.
Mobile News reports that analysts believe the market is still in its infancy, even with all the progress that has been made so far. Which means that there are still many consumers who can make money when they sell their old phones to recycling firms and compare offers to get the most money possible.
In 2013, about 5.4 million old mobile phones were sold by people in the UK, with individual recycling companies, like Mazuma, managing to handle hundreds of thousands of phones each month.
Analysts anticipate that with the current rate of growth, the number of phones recycled annually will have more than tripled to hit 16 million units by the year 2018.
Back in 2007, an average old phone would net the owner about £20 when sent to a recycling company, but the advent of smart devices has meant that typical payouts had risen to £108 by last year.
In fact for many consumers, the recycling process is an essential part of the mobile lifecycle, since it means that they can get some cash back to help cover the cost of an upgrade, even if they decide to ditch their existing handset while it is still worth a significant amount of money.
The upgrade cycle has become far shorter in the past seven years and the value of smart devices has risen, meaning that the mobile recycling providers will often refurbish old devices for resale, rather than breaking them up for scrap. And this industry shows no sign of slowing its growth.
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