Batteries responsibilities for business

If you manufacture or import batteries with the intention of placing them on the market, you must meet certain requirements that restrict the use of cadmium and mercury and set out how batteries should be labelled.

Substance restrictions in batteries

If you place batteries on the market you must ensure that they comply with the substance restrictions for cadmium and mercury. You must not place on the market:

• any battery that contains more than 0.0005 per cent (5 parts per million) of mercury by weight - button cells are permitted a mercury content of no more than 2 per cent by weight
• any portable battery that contains more than 0.002 per cent of cadmium by weight - this does not apply to portable batteries intended for use in emergency and alarm systems including emergency lighting, medical equipment or cordless power tools

Using the crossed out wheeled bin symbol on batteries

If you place batteries on the market you must label them with a crossed out wheeled bin symbol, which tells users that they should be recycled rather than thrown in a bin and sent to landfill. If the batteries are too small to be labelled, you must print the symbol on the packaging. The regulations set out specific dimensions for the marking of batteries and packaging with the symbol. See an example of the crossed out wheeled bin symbol.

Using appropriate chemical symbols on batteries

If you place batteries on the market you must label them with the appropriate chemical symbol or symbols beneath the crossed out wheeled bin symbol.

The chemical symbol is intended to show that one of the restricted materials is present in the battery, not the amount of that material. The regulations set out specific dimensions for the marking of batteries and packaging with the symbol.

Removability of waste batteries from appliances

If you place appliances on the market that contain batteries, or are designed to incorporate batteries, you must ensure that:

• the appliance is designed so that a waste battery can be readily removed from it
• instructions are included showing how the battery can be removed safely and, where appropriate, informing the end user of the type of battery incorporated

This requirement does not apply where, for safety, performance, medical or data integrity reasons, continuity of power supply is necessary and a permanent connection is required between the appliance and the battery.