According to a recent study there’s around £1.7bn worth of old mobiles sitting around in the UK unused.
Over a thousand participated in the study and it was discovered that two-thirds of them have at least one redundant mobile at home, while one-in-five have as many as three further devices not in use. If these figures are extrapolated to the rest of the UK population, there could be about 68 million handsets waiting to be recycled. Recycled mobiles fetch on average £25 each, hence the £1.7bn figure.
Whilst the possible monetary value is frightening, of more concern is the potential environmental implications. If these devices are not disposed of properly and just thrown away when they become worthless, toxic materials, such as batteries, metals and plastics will cause serious environmental damage.
What is really surprising is that this is happening in a country where there are numerous organisations involved in initiatives to recycle old mobile phones. Yet people are still hoarding their old handsets. This is not a wise move though because, unlike fine wines, mobile technology rarely increases in value as it ages. The surest way to get the best price for a redundant mobile is to visit a recycling cash comparison website as soon as it is no longer being used.