Every UK business that creates, moves, or handles waste carries a legal “duty of care” for that waste. This checker maps your role and your waste type to the specific documents and registrations the law requires, so you do not get caught out by a missing transfer note or an unregistered carrier.
How it works
The duty of care comes from section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, expanded by the Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2011 and the Hazardous Waste Regulations 2005. The rules attach to your role in the chain:
- A producer must describe the waste, apply the waste hierarchy, and only pass waste to an authorised next holder.
- A carrier who transports controlled waste in the course of business must register with the Environment Agency. Lower tier is for carrying only your own non-hazardous, non-construction waste; everything else is upper tier.
- Any transfer of non-hazardous waste needs a Waste Transfer Note kept for two years. Hazardous waste instead needs a Consignment Note kept for three years, plus a quarterly consignee return.
The tool combines these rules to produce the exact obligations for your scenario.
Example and notes
A landscaping firm carrying its own non-hazardous green waste needs only a lower tier carrier registration and a transfer note when the waste is tipped at a permitted site. If the same firm starts collecting paint tins (hazardous), it now needs upper tier registration and a consignment note. There is no minimum quantity for the duty of care, so even a single bag of business waste is covered. This guidance is not legal advice — confirm with the Environment Agency.