With more than 22 million redundant routers cluttering British homes[1] — enough to fill ten Olympic swimming pools — over three quarters of consumers (76%) want a universal router to cut e-waste[2]
Two fifths of households (42%) have an unused router in their home, and one in seven have two or more[3]
Three in five (59%) Brits do not know how to recycle their old router[4] and 15% have been sent one by a provider even though they already had a working device[5]
Some 60% of consumers feel broadband providers can do more to help save the planet, with Sky voted the worst for helping users to recycle[6][7]
Younger people are the most likely to feel guilty about accumulating spare routers, with 36% of 18-34s regretting not recycling a router, compared to 16% of over 55s[8]
Broadband consumers who want to learn how to recycle or return their router to their provider can consult Uswitch’s recycling guide
Households across the UK are sitting on more than 22 million unused broadband routers — enough to fill ten Olympic swimming pools — which are going to waste instead of being recycled[1], according to new research from Uswitch.com, the comparison and switching service.
The research, released on the eve of Global Recycling Day, shows that two fifths of households (42%) currently have an unused router in their home, while one in seven homes (14%) have two or more collecting dust[3].
With the overwhelming majority of consumers (87%) receiving their router from a broadband provider when they sign up for a new deal, whether they need it or not[9], more than three quarters (76%) say they would prefer to be given a universal router — that will still work even if they change broadband provider — to cut down on e-waste[2].
More than one million tonnes of electrical waste are generated by UK households and businesses each year, estimates e-waste research organisation Material Focus[10].
The research points to a lack of awareness among broadband customers about how to recycle a router, with three in five (59%) saying they don’t know how to do so[4]. Meanwhile, one in seven Brits (15%) say their provider has sent them a brand new router, despite them already having a working device in their home[5].
In all, 60% of customers believe providers should be doing more to help the environment when it comes to recycling old tech[7]. Sky has been voted by consumers to be the worst offender when it comes to informing customers about how to recycle their router[6].
In light of this volume of e-waste, Uswitch.com is calling on broadband providers to make it easier for customers to recycle their unused routers, and to offer a service that enables new or departing customers to return old routers.
Nick Baker, broadband expert at Uswitch.com, comments: “We can all be guilty of holding onto tech for longer than we need, but the volume of e-waste is now a serious problem and with more than 22 million routers collecting dust in our homes. Action must be taken.
“Broadband providers are currently under no obligation to help their customers recycle unused routers, but with the majority of routers coming from the providers in the first place, they need to step up and play a bigger role in tackling this issue.
“Well over half of people don’t know how to recycle an old router, pointing to a lack of awareness among the public. Providers must bridge this gap and ensure their customers have all the information they need to dispose of old routers in an environmentally friendly way.”
Find out more about how to recycle your broadband router here.
Notes to editors:
Opinium surveyed a sample of 2,000 UK adults from the 19th to 22nd October 2021. Results were weighted to reflect a nationally representative criteria.
1. Respondents were asked, ‘how many unused Wi-Fi routers do you have in your home?’, the average among all respondents was 0.8. According to the ONS, there were an estimated 27.8 million households in the UK in 2020. 27.8 million x 0.8 = 22.24 million.
2. Respondents were asked ‘how far do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements?’, 76% of people agreed with the statement ‘broadband providers should work together to come up with a ‘universal router’ to reduce e-waste’.
3. Respondents were asked, ‘how many unused Wi-Fi routers do you have in your home?’, 42% of people said that they had an unused router in their home. 14.29% of respondents said that they had 2 or more unused routers in their home, which is equal to one in seven.
4. Respondents were asked ‘how far do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements?’, 59% of people agreed with the statement ‘I am unaware of how to recycle a broadband router correctly’.
5. Respondents were asked ‘do any of the following statements apply to you?’, 15% of people agreed with the
statement ‘I have been sent a new router by a broadband provider despite already having one in working order’.
6. Respondents were asked ‘do any of the following statements apply to you?’, Sky customers were most likely to agree with the statement ‘my broadband provider didn’t tell me how to recycle my old router when they sent me a new one’
7. Respondents were asked ‘how far do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements?’, 60% of people agreed with the statement ‘I wish my broadband provider would look for solutions to reducing waste’.
8. Respondents were asked ‘how far do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements?’, 36% of 18 to 34-year olds agreed with the statement ‘I feel guilty that I haven’t recycled my unused routers’, compared to 16% of people aged 55 and over.
9. Respondents were asked ‘has the router you use to access your Wi-Fi been supplied by your broadband provider?’, 87% of people said ‘yes’.
10. Source: Material Focus — Electrical Waste – Challenges and Opportunities: An investigation into Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) flows in the UK
About Uswitch
Uswitch is one of the UK’s top comparison websites for home services switching, including energy, broadband and mobiles.
More people go to Uswitch to switch their energy, broadband and mobile than any other site, and we have saved consumers over £2.7 billion off their bills since we launched in September 2000.
Free mobile app Utrack also helps households manage their home energy usage and make potential savings.
Uswitch is part of RVU, a group of online brands with a mission to empower consumers to make more confident home services, insurance and financial decisions.
