Hairdressing supplies wholesaler, Aston and Fincher Ltd, which operates from 26 warehouse sites in the UK, has pleaded guilty to 31 charges relating to failure to comply with packaging waste regulations and failing to register as a producer of electrical and electronic waste. The offences were uncovered by a routine Environment Agency investigation.
The company had gained an unfair competitive advantage over businesses that complied with legislation, since by failing to comply with the Producer Responsibility (Packaging Waste) Regulations SI 2007/871, it avoided paying approximately £10,900. Further, by failing to comply with the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations SI 2006/3289, it avoided paying £445 plus unknown costs of financing the recovery and recycling of waste equipment for which they would have been responsible.
Aston and Fincher Ltd was fined a total of £20,150. It was also ordered to pay compensation of £7,135 to the Environment Agency for loss of registration fees, and costs of £3,605.
The producer responsibility for packaging and WEEE legislation aims to ensure businesses assume responsibility for recovering and recycling a proportion of waste electrical products and packaging waste. They also require that companies who handle packaging as manufacturers, packer/fillers, sellers, importers or leasing companies are registered each year and provide evidence that they recycle packaging.
Aston and Fincher Ltd also imported a range of electrical items into the UK, and failed to meet their obligations under the WEEE Regulations.
Hannah Wooldridge from the Environment Agency said, ”This is the first prosecution of a business for offences under both the packaging regulations and the similar producer responsibility legislation for electrical equipment. It should send a strong message out to all companies who do have producer responsibility obligations to ensure that they comply with the legal requirements placed on them.”
She added, “It’s a company responsibility to ensure they are fully compliant with all legislation. While registering would have cost less than £11,000 for the years concerned, their appearance in court has cost them well over £30,000. This case demonstrates that flouting the law does not pay.”
Company secretary, David Winnington, said it was not a deliberate intention to evade the legislation, rather the company was simply not aware of it.
