Reverse Vending Machines
NatWest's Machine Helps Consumers Recycle Unwanted Plastic Cards
Laura McQuarrie — February 23, 2023
UK bank NatWest is testing out a reverse vending machine for the purposes of helping consumers to take some of the bulk out of their wallets and recycle their unwanted plastic payment cards, gift cards and loyalty cards. Security is the main reason that consumers are confused about how to properly dispose of their plastic cards, and as a result, millions of batches of recycling are contaminated.
These reverse vending machines can be found at locations across London in response to research that says "more than six in 10 UK consumers (62%) have a total of 65m unused, unwanted or expired cards “lying around at home” and that “a lack of recycling options […] has created over 380 tonnes of plastic card waste since 2017, equivalent to 211 stampeding elephants."
