More than 6m vapes and pods discarded weekly in UK despite single-use ban, study finds | Vaping
More than 6 million e-cigarettes and e-cigarette pods are thrown away every week in the UK; Waste management companies warn that this amount continues to strain recycling systems despite the ban on single-use e-cigarettes.
The 6.3 million e-cigarettes and pods thrown away each week in 2025 represented 23%, according to research by recycling campaign group Material Focus. decrease compared to the previous year.
This shows that the ban on sales of single-use e-cigarettes, which comes into force on 1 June 2025, has had an impact on waste levels, as well as a 31% drop in the number of e-cigarettes purchased each week.
However, the amount of waste still continues to cause problems. Waste management company Veolia told Material Focus that there is about one fire a day in its vehicles and facilities, possibly as a result of hidden lithium-ion batteries, while Biffa reports it receives more than 200,000 incorrectly recycled e-cigarettes in its mixed collections each month.
According to Material Focus’ findings, more than 1 billion e-cigarettes have been thrown away in the last four years. The research conducted with Opinium also showed that almost half (47%) of e-cigarette users were unaware that their devices could be recycled.
The study included a sample of 1,000 people over the age of 16 who had purchased e-cigarettes since June 1, 2025. The results have been weighted to be representative of the UK population.
Scott Butler, managing director of Material Focus, said the “vapocalypse continues” as battery fires increase in the UK. He said the tobacco and e-cigarette bill passing parliament was an opportunity for change and suggested that proposed licensing for e-cigarette retailers should make in-store recycling mandatory.
“Recycling e-cigarettes should be as easy as buying them,” Butler said. “It is a long-standing legal obligation for all shops that make a profit from selling them to offer and cover the cost of safe recycling drop-off points. Manufacturers and importers of e-cigarettes must cover the costs of recycling.”
Because e-cigarettes are powered by lithium-ion batteries, devices that are not properly disposed of are subsequently crushed or damaged, which can lead to dangerous fires in garbage trucks and recycling centers.
There is no specific data collection on lithium battery related fires in England and Wales. In Scotland, there were 69 lithium battery-related fires in 2025, compared to 20 in 2019, according to the latest freedom of information data from the Scottish fire and rescue service; According to last year’s figures, there were 10 house fires, two in hospitals and three in prisons. According to data from 2009, there were no deaths related to this in Scotland.
Improper disposal of these batteries, which should not be thrown into an ordinary bin but can be recycled in designated bins in many supermarkets, has caused serious fires in rubbish trucks and recycling facilities across the UK; this is estimated to cost more than £1 billion annually and causes staff injuries.
These events also caused local increases in air pollution that exceeded World Health Organization limits and posed health risks to surrounding communities.
The research found that an estimated 2.2 million disposable e-cigarettes are purchased every week, despite the disposable ban pushing the market towards rechargeable models.
Purchases of standard rechargeable e-cigarettes also fell by 28%, from 6.3 million per week in 2024 to 4.5 million last year. This decline has likely been offset by the increasing popularity of high-capacity “big puff” rechargeables, which offer several thousand puffs compared to older 600-puff models, as well as wider availability of refill pods.
Material Focus calls for a comprehensive, widely accessible takeback solution paired with a large-scale public awareness campaign. The group insists more clearly recycle vape packaging instructions and highly visible in-store collection points argue that this should be a key requirement of any proposed retail licensing system.
A Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs spokesman said: “Disposable e-cigarettes are making children addicted to nicotine and ruining our high streets, so we’ve taken action and banned them.
“Rogue traders will face serious penalties, while those who blatantly break the rules and reoffend will face unlimited fines or imprisonment.
“We are committed to recycling more e-cigarettes and have made it mandatory for all e-cigarette retailers to provide recycling bins.”
