Retailers taking part in the UK’s first deposit return scheme (DRS) are to have the fees they receive boosted by almost 20% in a bid to tackle accusations it will leave them financially crippled.
Circularity Scotland (CSL), the management body made up of manufacturers and retailers, announced the move on Friday, saying it had taken advice of independent analysis commissioned by accountants PwC.
It follows the Scottish government’s announcement in November that thousands of smaller retailers would be able to opt out of DRS, which has brought the predicted level of manual return points and reverse vending machines for the scheme, due to launch in August, from 30,000 to nearer 10,000.
CSL, which is being challenged by a judicial review backed by the Scottish Grocers’ Federation (SGF) amid anger over the level of fees, said the move had freed up extra money for it to invest with retailers offering return points and also took into account inflation, although it stressed it wouldn’t add it to the overall cost of the scheme.
The move is the latest concession from CSL as it faces a race against time to meet the 16 August start date for the scheme. Last month it announced a reduction in producer fees of up to 40%.
It had previously described the proposed fees to retailers as the highest in Europe.
Under the latest changes, retailers using reverse vending machines will see fees increase from 3.55p to 3.70p for the first 8,000 containers received, and from 1.35p to 1.60p for each additional container.
However, CSL is not making any changes to the fees for manual take-backs, with the expectation that it will be smaller retailers, most likely to opt out of the scheme, that would fall under this category.
The developments are being closely watched elsewhere in the UK, following the announcement earlier this month that a DRS would launch in October 2025.
Sources suggest the rest of the UK is likely to follow Scotland’s lead when it comes to which retailers will take part and the level of support.
“We’re focused on delivering a deposit return scheme that works for businesses of all sizes and delivers for Scotland,” said CSL chief executive David Harris.
“We will continue to work closely with industry, helping them to prepare for the scheme and ensuring that the scheme runs as efficiently and at the lowest cost possible from August 2023. These changes will not increase the total scheme implementation costs or producer fee.”
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