Every business that produces, stores, or disposes of waste has a legal duty of care under Section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. This is not optional - it applies from day one of your business operations and continues until your waste reaches its final destination.
The duty of care means you are personally responsible for ensuring your waste does not cause harm to people or the environment, even after you have handed it over to someone else. If your waste ends up fly-tipped or causes pollution, you could face prosecution and unlimited fines - regardless of whether you knew what happened to it.
Your four legal duties
Section 34 imposes four specific duties on anyone who produces, imports, carries, keeps, treats, or disposes of controlled waste. These duties apply to you as a business owner or manager:
What "controlled waste" means
Controlled waste includes virtually all waste produced by businesses:
- commercial waste from shops, offices, restaurants, pubs, hotels, schools and other commercial premises
- industrial waste from factories, workshops and manufacturing processes
- construction and demolition waste such as rubble, timber, metal and plasterboard
The only exemption is for occupiers of domestic property regarding their household waste - but if you run a business from home, your business waste is still controlled waste.
Using registered waste carriers
You must only hand your waste to someone who is authorised to take it. In practice, this means using a registered waste carrier. Using an unregistered carrier - even if they offer a cheaper price - makes you liable if the waste is fly-tipped or disposed of illegally.
How to check if a carrier is registered
Before using any waste carrier:
- Ask for their registration number. Legitimate carriers will have it to hand.
- Search the Environment Agency's online register to check the registration is valid and covers the type of waste you need to dispose of.
- Note the registration number, company name and the date you checked.
Warning signs of rogue carriers:
- Cash-only payment with no receipt
- Unmarked vehicles with no company branding
- No paperwork or reluctance to provide a waste transfer note
- Prices that seem too good to be true
- Unable or unwilling to provide registration details
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Check the waste carrier register
Use the Environment Agency's online register to verify your waste carrier is registered and their registration is current. Search by company name or registration number. The register shows what waste types they can carry and whether registration is upper or lower tier.
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Get registration details in writing
Ask your waste carrier to provide their registration certificate number and keep a copy. Include this in your records alongside your waste transfer notes. If they cannot provide registration details, do not use them.
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Consider where your waste goes
A legitimate carrier should be able to tell you where your waste is going - which recycling facility, transfer station, or disposal site. If they are vague or evasive about the destination, this is a warning sign.
Waste transfer notes
Every time you hand non-hazardous waste to a carrier, you must complete a waste transfer note (WTN). This document creates a paper trail showing where your waste came from and where it went. Both you and the carrier must sign it and keep copies.
Completing a waste transfer note
A valid waste transfer note must include:
- a specific description of the waste, including the European Waste Code (EWC) where possible; "mixed commercial waste" is not enough
- the weight or volume, and whether it is loose or in containers
- the date, time and place of the handover
- your business name, address and contact details
- the carrier's name, address and waste carrier registration number
- your Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code
If you have regular waste collections of the same type by the same carrier, you can use an annual "season ticket" instead of completing a new note for every collection. The season ticket covers up to 12 months of transfers.
Hazardous waste
If your business produces hazardous waste, you face stricter requirements. Hazardous waste includes substances that are dangerous to health or the environment - things like solvents, oils, chemicals, fluorescent tubes, batteries, and some paints.
Is your waste hazardous?
Common business waste that is classed as hazardous includes:
- oils and lubricants such as engine, hydraulic and cutting oil
- solvents such as white spirit, thinners and degreasers
- lead-acid car batteries and some industrial batteries
- electrical equipment such as computer monitors, and fridges and air conditioning units containing CFCs or HCFCs
- fluorescent tubes, which contain mercury
- solvent-based paints and wood preservatives
- cleaning chemicals, pesticides and photographic chemicals
- asbestos, which needs specialist handling and disposal
If you are unsure whether your waste is hazardous, check with your waste carrier or the Environment Agency. Getting it wrong can result in prosecution.
Key differences for hazardous waste
Hazardous waste has more demanding requirements than ordinary commercial waste:
- You use a consignment note instead of a transfer note: a 5-part document that tracks the waste from production to final disposal.
- You must keep records for 3 years as a producer; receiving facilities keep them for 5 years.
- Your carrier must be specifically registered to carry hazardous waste.
Record keeping
Good record keeping is essential for demonstrating compliance with your duty of care. If you are ever investigated following a fly-tipping incident, your records are your defence.
Keep:
- Copies of all waste transfer notes and season tickets
- Waste carrier registration details (certificate number, date checked)
- Consignment notes for hazardous waste
- Invoices and receipts from waste carriers
- Any correspondence about waste disposal
Keep them for at least:
- 2 years for waste transfer notes
- 3 years for hazardous waste consignment notes, as a producer
- 5 years for hazardous waste records, at a receiving facility
Digital waste tracking
From 1 October 2026, sites in England and Wales that hold a permit or licence to receive waste must report every load they receive through the government's digital waste tracking service, within 2 working days. Paper records continue alongside it, so keep completing waste transfer notes and hazardous waste consignment notes for your own waste.
Defra plans to extend the requirement to receiving sites in Scotland and Northern Ireland in January 2027, and to waste carriers, brokers and dealers in October 2027.
What happens if you breach duty of care
Breaching your duty of care is a criminal offence. The consequences can be severe:
- Fines are unlimited, in a magistrates' court or the Crown Court.
- Directors and managers can be personally prosecuted.
- You may have to pay to clean up pollution or fly-tipped waste.
- Prosecutions are public record and may be reported in local media.
Ignorance is not a defence. "I didn't know they were going to fly-tip it" will not protect you if you failed to check the carrier was registered or didn't get a proper waste transfer note.
Legal basis
Primary legislation and key regulations