Non-UK suppliers' data: tell us how you collected it for EEE placed on the UK market via online marketplaces

Online marketplaces are businesses that operate a website or mobile application (app) allowing non-UK suppliers to sell or supply their goods into the UK. 

If you are an online marketplace that enables non-UK based suppliers not established in the UK to place EEE on the UK market, you must report their EEE data for the equipment they sell through your online marketplace. This data must be as accurate as reasonably possible.

If the total EEE available on your online marketplace, including that of the non-UK based suppliers, is more than 5 tonnes a year you must also submit a document to your environmental regulator known as a ‘methodology’.

The methodology must describe how you gathered and recorded the data about the EEE placed on the UK market by non-UK based suppliers via your platform. The methodology helps to show that your data accurately represent the categories and amount of EEE you’re responsible for reporting.

You should regularly review and update all methodologies so that they accurately reflect changes to non-UK based suppliers, products and processes.

Who must tell us

Online marketplaces must submit a methodology to their producer compliance scheme (PCS) if the total EEE available on their online marketplace, including that of the non-UK based suppliers, is more than 5 tonnes a year. The PCS will in turn send the methodology to the appropriate environmental regulator for assessment.   

Other producers do not have to submit a methodology. However, having one can provide evidence that:

• you have a clear process in place
• your data is as accurate as reasonably possible
• you have a documented process that is resilient if there is a change to staff or similar disruptions

This is especially useful in the case of compliance audits by the environmental regulators and PCS. 

What you should tell us

The recommended overall structure for an online marketplace methodology should contain:

• a summary of the methodology
• details of your method – for example, sample selection and sizes
• information about the technology used
• any supporting data
• information about future improvement 

Retain all relevant information used in developing your methodology for validation and auditing purposes.

Summary

Your summary should explain what you’ve included and what you’ve left out. For example, you may be excluding your exports from your reporting because they are not required, see Report the amount of EEE you place on the market.

It should also explain who in your business will be sampling, recording and submitting the data.

Your method

This section should explain how you collect your data and ensure it is accurate and representative.

Your methodology should cover:

• sampling

• sellers, including how you work out which suppliers are or are not established in the UK

• other information

The following lists give examples of what you should include, but they are not exhaustive.

Sample details must include:

• your sample size
• why you chose certain samples
• how the samples and sample sizes you chose represent EEE categories
• how the samples represent your suppliers - for example, using more samples for larger suppliers
• details of the sampling procedures - for example, whether product grouping is used and if so, how and where, including how you ensure that product grouping is accurately reflective of the appropriate EEE category that it should be reported under 
• how the weights are quality assured

EEE product details must include:

• how you worked out the EEE product weight, including ensuring that packaging and battery weights are deducted
• how you collect information for seasonal EEE products
• how you deducted anything that is non-EEE or out of scope (such as exclusions, exemptions and consumables), for example see EEE covered by the waste EEE (WEEE) Regulations
• how you assess and classify your EEE as household (business to consumer, B2C) or non-household (business to business, B2B) 

Non-UK based supplier details can include:

• how you validate weights and other information provided by suppliers
• how you check that scales used by suppliers are accurate and appropriate for the size and weight of products
• what you do when you are unable to obtain data from suppliers
• whether you will try to increase the amount of data you get from your suppliers in the future and how you’ll achieve this, including timeframes

Your document can also include:

• how you have taken any seasonal variations into account
• details of the information you’ve collected – for example, how you determined your top EEE products
• questions you ask suppliers and customers and the frequency of checking this information
• how you group or categorise your EEE products for sale and how you’ve used this in your data
• how you verify weight data that suppliers have given you

What technology you use

This should include:

• details of the IT system you use to record data
• how you collect, record, process and report your data
• who is responsible for gathering, uploading and approving the data
• how long you store your data for
• your version control process, if you have one
• how you back up your data and the frequency
• how your weights are stored, and any audit trail for this
• how you ensure the integrity of the data

Supporting data 

There should be supporting information that covers:

• how you’ll make sure you meet reporting deadlines
• any anomalies you’ve found, such as weights, packaging and seasonal variations
• all background weights gathered as part of the sampling exercise
• the process for gathering and reporting data, ideally as a flow diagram
• any assumptions made when collecting the data or grouping products
• the type of quality assurance done, including information on who did this and when they did it
• an outline of any information you’d share with the environmental regulator before an audit

Continuous improvement

You must review and update your EEE online marketplace methodology regularly. You should explain how you’ll do this to reflect:

• business expansion
• additional brands
• changes to EEE products
• change in activity and suppliers
• process changes

This may include frequency of repeat sampling and quality assurance to ensure that the methodology is still appropriate.

Deadlines for submitting your methodology

To comply with the regulations, you must submit your methodology when joining a PCS each year.

If you make any changes to your methodology, you must notify your scheme within 28 days of the change and include the date on which the change took place.

If there’s a problem, the environmental regulator will contact you. You may have to revise your methodology and submit it again to ensure your EEE data is as accurate as possible. 

Contact your environmental regulator

For England, the environmental regulator is the Environment Agency.

Email: weee@environment-agency.gov.uk

For Wales, the environmental regulator is Natural Resources Wales.

Email: weee@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk

For Northern Ireland, the environmental regulator is the Northern Ireland Environment Agency.

Email: weee@daera‐ni.gov.uk

For Scotland, the environmental regulator is the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.

Email: producer.responsibility@sepa.org.uk