Getting paid to recycle may seem too good to be true, but you’d be surprised at what you can earn by doing your bit for the environment.
Here are five ways to make cash from what you’d normally consider to be rubbish.
1. Cash-in on Old Clothes
Every year, Brits throw out 300,000 tonnes of old clothes in their household rubbish bins [1]. But did you know that you can trade in your unwanted clothes to high street retailers and receive discounts or vouchers in return?
For instance, bring a bag of unwanted clothes (including home textiles and shoes) to any H&M store and receive a £5 voucher for each bag. Oxfam and M&S have partnered for the Another Life scheme, where donating items to Oxfam can earn you a £5 M&S voucher off a £35 spend on clothing, home, and beauty products in M&S stores, as long as your donation contains at least one item of M&S labelled clothing or soft furnishings.
Additionally, members of M&S’s Sparks loyalty scheme can receive 20% off kids’ daywear by dropping pre-loved M&S school uniforms into the Shwop box in selected stores. Reskinned Takeback allows you to send in your unwanted branded clothes and receive reward credits from the brand. Brands like Hush, Seasalt, Anthropologie, and Oliver Bonas are part of this initiative.
2. Make Money from Your Old Mobile
It’s estimated that 25 million mobile phones are thrown away across the UK each year [2]. Even if you don’t throw it away, it might just be gathering dust in a drawer. But why pass up the chance to turn your old handset into cash?
It’s quick and easy to sell your phone with special comparison sites, which search the internet for the best price for you. Just follow these three simple steps:
- Compare quotes: Find your device using their tool, then look at all the offers available from recyclers. Use filters to specify details like your phone’s condition, storage size, and network lock status.
- Post your phone: Once you’ve selected an offer, mail your phone to the recycler. They’ll send you a postage pack or printable postage label.
- Get paid: After the recycler checks your device, you’ll receive your money via bank transfer, PayPal, or other method.
Newer phones in good condition will usually be worth more than older models with wear and tear. However, even broken or damaged smartphones can be sold, as recyclers will break them down into materials and parts.
Please note: Make sure you wipe your phone with a factory reset before you send it to protect your data and private information.
3. Swap Shoes for Discounts
In the UK, approximately 15% (or 26 tonnes) of shoe waste is collected and redistributed as second-hand, while the remaining 85% (or 142 tonnes) is sent to landfill [3].
Before you throw away your old shoes, think again! You can head to Schuh with a pair of shoes from any brand to exchange for a £5 off a £25 spend voucher, valid on full-price shoes either in-store or online.
Find out more about Schuh’s Sell Your Soles initiative.
4. Sell Your Empties on eBay
You’d be amazed at what people will buy on eBay. You can sell jewellery boxes, empty candle jars, and perfume bottles and make decent cash while keeping waste out of landfills. Empty containers from popular brands like Diptyque or Le Labo can go for a surprisingly high price. Makeup and perfume samples are also worth selling.
5. Get Freebies for Beauty Products
Finished your face cream? Used the last of your lip balm? You can recycle your empty beauty product containers for free and maybe even get something in return.
- At Boots, the Recycling at Boots scheme awards members 500 Advantage Card points when you bring five empty products to an in-store recycling bin and spend £10 or more.
- Lush customers can claim 50p towards their in-store shopping for each qualifying item returned for recycling. You can also return 10ml sample pots for an additional 5p off per item.
- The Perfume Shop offers a 15% discount voucher for returning empty perfume bottles.
- John Lewis’s Beautycycle scheme gives ‘My John Lewis’ members £5 off when they bring in five or more clean, empty plastic beauty product containers and spend £20 or more on Beauty.
If you enjoyed reading this blog, why not check out A Guide to Sustainable Clothes Shopping | Vavista Car Insurance.
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