Unrecycled mobiles worth £2.7 billion retained by UK consumers
Friday, June 3, 2011 - 09:13:59
A new report has estimated the value of old mobile phones left languishing in nooks and crannies around the UK at £2.7 billion, according to the Telegraph.
Network provider Orange has launched a new mobile phone recycling service and it conducted the study to prove just how much untapped potential there is in the UK market.
Orange discovered that almost a third of UK consumers are not actually aware that they can sell their old mobile phone and get a bit of cash in return, regardless of its age or condition.
Given that the UK population is actually exceeded by the number of mobiles that there are hanging around, it is clear to see why Orange found the potential value of unused phones to be so high.
Forty per cent of respondents to the survey said that they had not ever taken advantage of mobile phone recycling while a quarter stated that the idea of recycling mobiles had never occurred to them.
Orange is entering the mobile recycling arena supported by the claim that you can get an average of £45 for your old phone, with some people netting over £250 for particularly desirable, well preserved models.
UK consumers are being urged to recycle more and more products, but for the moment the most common types of recycling are simple household waste. Campaigners and governments want to change this across Europe by getting more people to recycle old phones and other unwanted electrical gadgets.
Interestingly, around 23 per cent of people aged between 18 and 24 said that they kept their old mobiles after an upgrade because they were sentimental about the aging technology. When looking at those who fall into the over 55 age category this drops off to only seven per cent.
Latest News
Wednesday, May 13, 2020 - 10:32:41
Every industry around the world has been impacted by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and recycling has been especially affected as a result of force [...]
Read More
Wednesday, May 6, 2020 - 21:33:36
Apple has pulled back the curtains on the all-new iPhone SE, bringing with it a raft of eco-friendly design features which aim to improve the green cr [...]
Read More
Wednesday, April 29, 2020 - 21:32:00
Researchers from New Zealand have demonstrated a new recycling solution which could help companies to reclaim rare materials from smartphones, PCs and [...]
Read More