Packaging and Battery Take-back

Two obligations sit behind this page. We pay for the recycling of the packaging our parcels arrive in, and we take back the batteries that come inside the parts we supply. This page explains both in the terms that matter to you.

Packaging

What we pay for

Under the German Packaging Act (Verpackungsgesetz), anyone who sends packaged goods to a household in Germany has to register the packaging in the central LUCID register and pay a licensing fee into a dual system, which funds the collection and recycling of that packaging once you have finished with it.

We are registered and we participate in a dual system for the packaging we ship.

LUCID registration number: DE3086523197470

The fee is already paid by the time the parcel reaches you. Nothing further is payable by you, and you do not need to do anything to make the recycling happen beyond putting the material in the right bin.

What to do with the packaging

• Cardboard and paper go into the paper collection.
• Plastic film, air cushions, foam inserts and plastic strapping go into the Gelber Sack or Gelbe Tonne in Germany, and into the equivalent light packaging collection elsewhere.
• Flatten boxes before putting them out.

Keep the packaging until you are sure you are keeping the part. A part returned in its original packaging is worth more to the next customer, and in days 15 to 30 of our return window the original packaging is one of the conditions. See Returns and Refunds.

Outside Germany

Packaging obligations differ by country and we meet the ones that apply to the markets we ship into. Where a country operates an extended producer responsibility scheme with its own registration, we register for it.

Batteries

What we sell, stated plainly

We do not sell batteries. There is no vehicle starter battery, no high voltage traction pack, no battery module and no loose cell in our range. What our catalogue carries around the battery are the parts that sit next to it: earth and negative cables, pack guard panels, heater brackets, air deflectors, coolant expansion tanks and heat shields.

A small number of parts contain a cell inside them, for example a key, a remote unit or a sensor. Those are the batteries this section is about, and we take them back.

Why a cell cannot go in the bin

Batteries contain materials that do not belong in household waste and that can start fires in refuse trucks and sorting plants. They also contain metals worth recovering. Under the EU Batteries Regulation and the German Battery Act (BattDG), end users are legally obliged to return batteries separately rather than throw them away.

The crossed-out wheeled bin

You will find this symbol on batteries and on parts containing them:

A wheeled bin with a cross through it.

It means the item must not go into household waste. It has to be handed in separately so the materials can be recovered.

Where a battery contains more than the permitted trace amounts of certain metals, a chemical symbol is printed under the bin:

• Pb for lead
• Cd for cadmium
• Hg for mercury

What we take back, free of charge

Portable batteries and cells that came inside a part we supplied, for example in a key, a remote unit or a sensor. There is no charge and no purchase required.

We do not take back vehicle starter batteries or traction packs, because we do not sell them. The routes below are the right ones for those, and they are free to you.

How to send a cell back

1. Email contact@evparto.com with "BATTERY RETURN" in the subject line. Tell us what the cell came out of and whether it is damaged, swollen or leaking.
2. We reply with a return reference, an address and packing instructions. Cells are dangerous goods in transport and the instructions are not optional.
3. We pay the carriage. Take-back is free.

Do not simply put a cell in a parcel and post it. Lithium cells have their own transport rules, and one posted without them can be refused, seized or, in the worst case, catch fire in transit.

Never post a battery that is damaged, swollen, leaking or fire-affected. Tell us and we will arrange the correct route. In the meantime keep it outdoors, away from anything that can burn, on a non-combustible surface.

Starter batteries and traction packs: where to take them

We do not supply these, but they still must not go in the bin, and you do not have to pay to dispose of one.

• Any retailer that sells batteries of the same type is obliged to take one back, free of charge, whether or not you bought it there.
• Municipal recycling centres and hazardous waste collection points accept them free of charge.
• A high voltage traction battery must be removed by a qualified high voltage technician. It is heavy, it is live even when the vehicle is dead, and it is classed as dangerous goods. Your workshop or the vehicle's service network arranges that route. Do not attempt it yourself and do not let anyone disconnect it who is not qualified.

Handling a starter battery you are taking somewhere

• Keep it upright at all times.
• Fit the terminal covers if you have them, or tape over both terminals.
• Do not tip it, do not open it, and do not try to drain it.
• Wear gloves and eye protection when handling a lead acid battery.

Related pages

• Shipping and Delivery
• Returns and Refunds
• Product Safety
• Terms of Service
• Legal Notice