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?
On 1 November 2018, we began charging our collection sites a fee of $25 incl. GST (recommended retail price) per seat we collect to cover the costs of recycling. What you pay when you take in your seat can vary.
Some of the cost may be covered by your local council which may have chosen to provide a recycling incentive to encourage waste minimisation.
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.
Limit of 4 seats per customer. For bulk volumes please contact us directly to discuss options.
What materials are in the seats?
Up to 70% of seat materials (by weight) are recyclable.
Plastic, metal, harnesses – they can all have a second life.
News and Views
Child car seat recycling programme celebrates 3rd anniversary
Media release Not long-ago recycling was largely consigned to glass bottles, tin cans, paper and carboard, and some plastic, but that landscape now looks quite different. From electronics to printer toner cartridges, carpeting and waste oil, there are more ways to reduce how much you put in the bin – and an increasing awareness too. […]
Council backing for child car seat recycling in Hamilton
The Hamilton City Council has given child car seat recycling a boost with a subsidy which aims to extend access to the programme in the city. The council has partnered with the SeatSmart child car seat recycling programme and will offer a subsidy of $15 a seat for up to 300 seats a year from […]
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