Waste and clearance guide
Waste transfer notes: what to check before anyone removes your waste
If you are a business in England, your legal duty of care over your waste does not end when a van drives away with it. You must check the person taking it is a registered carrier, and you must keep a waste transfer note for two years. If your waste is fly-tipped, it is traced back to you, and “a man with a van said he would deal with it” is not a defence.
What the duty of care actually means
Every business that produces waste in England carries a duty of care for it. In practice that means three things: store it safely, transfer it only to someone authorised to take it, and keep a written record of the transfer.
The record is the part that gets forgotten, and it is the part an enforcement officer asks for.
The waste transfer note
A waste transfer note is the document that accompanies a transfer of waste from one party to another. GOV.UK requires that it contains enough information for the business taking your waste to handle and dispose of it safely, and that both parties complete the sections that apply to them and sign it.
In practice a usable note records:
- Who is transferring the waste and who is receiving it, with addresses
- The carrier’s registration number
- What the waste is, described properly rather than as “general waste”
- How much there is, and how it is contained
- Where and when the transfer happened
- Where it is going
- Signatures from both sides
Another document carrying the same information, such as an invoice, can serve as the note. What matters is the information, not the form.
Keep a copy, on paper or electronically, for two years. Season tickets covering repeated transfers of the same waste, and their schedules, must also be kept for two years after the last transfer.
Source: GOV.UK — Dispose of business or commercial waste: waste transfer notes.
Checking the carrier is registered
Anyone who transports waste as part of their business must be registered with the Environment Agency as a waste carrier. Registration comes in two tiers. Upper tier registration applies to businesses that carry waste as a core activity, including waste produced by others. Lower tier is a narrower registration for certain organisations and for carrying only your own waste in limited circumstances.
The check takes under a minute. The Environment Agency maintains a public register of waste carriers, brokers and dealers. Search the registration number the contractor gives you and confirm three things:
- The registration exists and is active, not expired
- The name on the register matches the business you are paying
- The tier is appropriate for what they are doing with your waste
Ask for the number before the job, not after. A contractor who hesitates when asked for their waste carrier registration is telling you something useful.
Where this bites in practice
Construction and refurbishment
Builders waste, packaging and strip-out material are produced in volume and are attractive to unregistered operators because disposal costs money. On a construction handover, be clear about which waste the cleaning contractor removes and which stays with the principal contractor, and get a note for whatever leaves.
Office clearances and refits
Old furniture, IT equipment and fit-out waste have their own rules. Waste electrical and electronic equipment is subject to separate regulations, and anything holding data needs a destruction record as well as a transfer note.
End of tenancy and void properties
Items left by outgoing tenants still count as the landlord’s or agent’s waste once they decide to dispose of them. A clearance that includes removal needs the same paperwork as any other transfer.
House clearances
Householders have a duty of care too. It is lighter than a business’s, but the obligation to use an authorised carrier still applies, and the consequences of a fly-tip traced to your address are the same.
What should never go in a general clearance
Some materials need separate handling and must not be mixed into a general load:
- Asbestos or any suspected asbestos-containing material, which requires specialist assessment before anything is moved
- Fridges, freezers and air conditioning units containing refrigerant gases
- Paint, solvents, adhesives and other chemicals
- Batteries, fluorescent tubes and gas cylinders
- Clinical or sanitary waste
- Tyres, which have their own disposal route
If a clearance contractor is willing to take all of this in one van with no questions, they are not disposing of it legally.
Questions to ask before booking a clearance
- What is your waste carrier registration number, and which tier?
- Will I get a waste transfer note, and when?
- Where is the waste going, and is that site permitted?
- What do you do with items that can be reused or recycled?
- What will you not take, and what should I arrange separately?
- Is the price inclusive of disposal, or is tipping charged on top?
Our registration
MG Executive Cleaners holds upper tier waste carrier registration CBDU644808, valid to June 2029. It is on the Environment Agency public register and you are welcome to check it before booking. We issue a waste transfer note for every collection, and we separate materials for reuse and recycling where we can rather than sending a full van to landfill.
See our rubbish removal and clearance service, or our credentials page where the registration sits alongside our insurance and ICO registration.
Frequently asked questions
How long must I keep a waste transfer note?
Two years, as a paper or electronic copy. Season tickets and their schedules must be kept for two years after the last transfer they cover.
Can an invoice be used instead of a transfer note?
Yes, provided it carries the same information the transfer note would. GOV.UK accepts a document with equivalent detail.
What is the difference between upper tier and lower tier registration?
Upper tier covers businesses that carry waste as a core activity, including other people’s waste. Lower tier is a narrower registration covering limited circumstances. A contractor removing your waste commercially should normally be upper tier.
Am I liable if a contractor fly-tips my waste?
Potentially, yes. The duty of care requires you to transfer waste only to an authorised person and to keep the record. Without evidence that you did, liability can follow the waste back to you.
Does a cleaning contractor need a waste carrier licence?
If they remove waste from your premises as part of their business, yes. If they only bag waste and leave it in your own bins, the waste stays with you and so does the duty of care.
Need a clearance with the paperwork done properly?
We are an upper tier registered waste carrier and issue a transfer note for every collection. Send your postcode and what needs removing.