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Using a van, pickup or trailer at Community Recycling Centres

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Summary of information on using a van, pickup or trailer at a community recycling centre (CRC)

You can use a van, pickup or trailer to bring limited types and amounts of household waste to some Community Recycling Centres (CRC).

If you want to do this, you must:

  • be a Surrey resident, and;
  • have a van permit, and;
  • use one of the CRCs at which vans are allowed access as detailed in the van permit terms and conditions, and;
  • use the CRCs within the terms and conditions described below.

There are limits on the types and amounts of construction and DIY waste that you can bring in a van to participating CRCs for free. Above certain limits, you will be charged. For more information, see our page on construction and DIY waste.

For details of which CRCs participate in the van permit scheme, using a van permit at a CRC, updating, renewing, cancelling and transferring van permits and what types of waste you can bring to a CRC in a van, see our van permit terms and conditions.

  • The annual fee for a permit is £10.00 (non-refundable).
  • Van permits are valid for 12 months from the date of issue and you are allowed to visit a maximum of 12 times.
  • Only one permit will be issued per household.

Which types of vehicle need a permit, using a hired van and applying for a permit

  • Vehicles without side or rear windows
  • Flat back vehicles
  • Pickup vehicle (two- or four-seater)
  • Combi vans
  • Large multi-purpose vehicles where seats have been removed
  • Camper vans
  • Vehicle pulling trailers

Passenger vehicles where seats have been removed may also be classified as vans. This may include minibuses and large hatchback cars. If you regularly use these types of vehicles to bring large quantities of construction and DIY waste to CRCs, you will be challenged by staff.

If you own a van for your business, you can use it to bring waste to a CRC in the same way as any other van. However, you can only use it to bring personal waste and not business waste to a CRC. If you use a van for business and have a van permit, other drivers will not be allowed to use the same van at CRCs.

If you hire a van and drive it yourself, you will need a van permit to visit a CRC. You will also need to show your vehicle hire documentation and provide proof that you are a Surrey resident.

If you hire a van and a driver to dispose of your waste, it will be classified as business waste. See our page on business waste for details of the CRCs that accept it and the charges that apply.

To apply for a van permit:

  • You must use a valid email address. If you are unable to complete the online application form, please write to Surrey County Council Contact Centre, Dakota, De Havilland Drive, Weybridge, Surrey KT13 0YP or telephone 0300 200 1003 (9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays).
  • You must make the application yourself. It is not possible to apply for a van permit on behalf of someone else.
  • You must be able to provide evidence that you are a Surrey resident. Business addresses are not allowed.
  • You must use a valid vehicle registration number.
  • The online application system will cross check with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency to ensure your vehicle is legal to be on the highway, is taxed and has a valid MOT. If it is not, you will not be able to use a van permit to enter any of our CRCs.
  • Surrey County Council has the right to request proof if there are queries over vehicle ownership or residency.
  • If you are hiring a vehicle, you must choose ‘hire vehicle' from the ‘vehicle type’ dropdown box. You can apply for a hire permit without knowing your vehicle registration number, however, you will need to go back into your permit to enter it before you are allowed to enter a site.
  • You must agree to the terms and conditions as set out below.
  • If applying online, you must enable two-step verification on your account and will need a mobile phone number to do this.
  • If applying online, your permit will be emailed to you within 15 minutes of submitting your application and you should check your junk mail folder if it doesn’t come to your inbox.

Apply for a permit.

Van permit terms and conditions

Below are the terms and conditions that apply to all residents using a van at a CRC.

CRCs at which vans are allowed access:

CRCs at which vans are not allowed access:

Using a van permit at a CRC

  • On your first visit, you must provide evidence that you are a Surrey resident, which can be your driving licence, a council tax bill, a recent utility bill or your vehicle V5 logbook. Site staff will verify the proof of residency against the details that you used to apply for your permit. You will then be given a car window sticker, which must be displayed on all subsequent visits.
  • The vehicle registration number on your van permit must be the same as the vehicle registration number of the van you are driving.
  • If hiring a vehicle, you must display your hire vehicle documentation on the windscreen on entry.
  • Visits in vans will be recorded as will the types of waste you bring to a CRC. Surrey County Council may use this information to identify users with business waste to prevent abuse of the scheme.
  • Only waste that comes from the van permit holder's household may be taken to a CRC in a van.
  • Once you have used your van permit to visit a CRC 12 times, you will not be able to apply for a new one until the period of your current permit expires. To find out how many times you have visited since you got your permit, log in to your Surrey account.
  • Van permits only allow you to enter the site and are not a permit to dispose of waste, which is subject to these van permit terms and conditions.
  • SCC will not tolerate abuse of its staff or anyone working on SCC's behalf. Your permit and access to services may be withdrawn if you abuse the staff on site.
  • SCC reserves the right to revoke van permits if any of these terms and conditions are breached or if any of the CRC site rules are broken.

Updating, renewing, cancelling or transferring your van permit

  • To make changes to your address, email address, phone number or vehicle registration, log in to your Surrey account. If you have updated your Surrey address, you will need to bring proof of address to a CRC the next time you visit.
  • Once your van permit expires, it does not automatically renew. Once the period of your permit expires, log in to your Surrey account to buy a new permit.
  • If you sell a van that has a van permit, you cannot transfer the permit to the new owner. The new owner will need to apply for a new van permit.
  • To cancel your permit, email contact.centre@surreycc.gov.uk, write to Contact Centre, Dakota, De Havilland Drive, Weybridge, Surrey KT13 0YP or telephone 0300 200 1003 (9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays) with your permit number, name, address, email address, phone number and vehicle registration
  • SCC may contact you to verify or update your details.
  • If an application is made for a van permit by a resident of an address or owner of a vehicle that already has a permit, we reserve the right to expire existing permits within five working days if we are unable to contact previous residents or owners.

Types of waste you can bring to participating CRCs in a van

Items you can bring to a participating CRC in a van up to 12 times a year in any amount for free:

  • Clay flowerpots
  • Crockery
  • Garden ornaments
  • Other household waste

Find out what types of construction and DIY waste you can take to a CRC in van.

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