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Old electrical appliances: The new regulation applies to stores with a sales area of 800 square meters or more
Photo: Hendrik Schmidt / dpa
From July 1st it will be easier for consumers in Germany to get rid of used electronic devices.
Because then supermarkets and discounters will also have to accept discarded kettles, shavers or smartphones - regardless of whether they were bought from them or not.
In the future, you can save yourself many a trip to the recycling center or electronics store.
The background is a new version of the Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act, which was passed last year and will apply from Friday.
You are obliged to take back the devices with the following restrictions:
The supermarkets must have more than 800 square meters of retail space.
The markets have to sell electrical and electronic equipment several times a year or continuously (to meet these requirements, electric toothbrushes on offer are enough).
The old devices may only have an edge length of up to 25 centimeters – so kettles, shavers or smartphones are allowed.
The obligation to take back is limited to three devices per device type.
There is only an obligation to take back larger devices such as computers or televisions if the customer buys a new device of the same type.
The large grocery chains Edeka, Rewe with their discount subsidiaries Netto and Penny, as well as Aldi and Lidl have stated that they are prepared for the new regulation.
The devices would simply have to be handed in at the checkout and would then be disposed of properly.
BUND: »Simplification for consumers«
For the waste expert Rolf Buschmann from the Bund Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland (BUND), the new regulation is a step in the right direction despite such restrictions.
"It's an additional simplification for consumers," he says.
This is all the more important since the return, especially for electrical devices, has so far been moderate.
In fact, according to the Federal Environment Agency, the collection rate of 65 percent required by the EU in Germany was recently clearly missed: According to the last data collection from 2019, just 44.3 percent of old electronic devices were properly disposed of.
"We therefore actually need many more sales options in retail," says BUND expert Buschmann.
The German Retail Association (HDE) sees things differently.
"The additional burden on trade caused by the return of old devices is considerable for many trading companies overall," says the responsible managing director of the HDE, Antje Gerstein.
Urban locations often only have small storage areas.
"If these now also have to be used to store old electronic devices, things will get tight in many places."
mgo/dpa
