SeatSmart
Child Car Seat
Recycling
Imagine 100,000 car seats sitting end to end…
They would stretch from Auckland’s CBD to Pukekohe. That’s the minimum number of car seats that expire every year in New Zealand.
Don’t let your expired or damaged car seat end up in landfill or be sold.
Our Programme
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Reasons to recycle
Why recycle your car seat?
There are lots positive environmental and social outcomes from recycling your seat:
– Diverting tonnes of plastic and metal from landfill each year;
– Providing dismantling work for people who have a disability, or are disadvantage or marginalised;
– Improving child safety by raising awareness of seat expiry dates;
– Lowering the use of virgin materials to make new plastic and metal; and
– Providing used materials to be repurposed into new items.
Who dismantles your seats?
On 1 November 2018 we moved to paid dismantling for the majority of seats. This is due to increasing volumes and the growing complexity of the seats we collect. We will use two services:
– Social Enterprise – a paid service that provides employment for people who have a disability or are disadvantaged or marginalised; and
– Department of Corrections community work programmes – a free dismantling service providing useful indoor work for offenders, used for a limited number of seats.
The nitty gritty
Is there a cost to recycle?
Fees vary across the country thanks to support from some local councils. These fees range from free to $25 per seat and cover the costs of collection, dismantling and recycling.
Fees are charged per seat at the collection site, so check out your local site.
What seats are accepted?
Any brand of booster, convertible seat or capsule. Sorry, no polystyrene seats, snap and go’s or other car seat accessories are accepted.
Collection sites have the right to reject mouldy seats as these can contaminate other seats and are a potential health risk.
What materials are in the seats?
Up to 75% of seat materials (by weight) are recyclable.
Plastic, metal, harnesses – they can all have a second life.
Should I consider a second-hand car seat?
The issue of using a second-hand car seat is a tricky one. We found some useful information from NZTA which can help if you are considering buying or borrowing one.
News and Views
My car seat will last forever, won’t it? Sadly, no
Did you know the child car seat in the back of your vehicle has an expiry date? With a life of between six and 10 years, it’s important to make sure yours hasn’t reached the end of its safe use.
SeatSmart in Queenstown and Wanaka
Queenstown and Wanaka have become the latest towns to gain access to child car seat recycling with the SeatSmart programme opening collection sites there for the first time.
SeatSmart Supporters
