CheersEmpties

Staff training

Till-side training: taking empties back

Seven short lessons for the person at the till, a quick quiz and a printable till card. Updated with Exchange for Change's published rules. Last checked: 12 Oct 2026

In short: Staff at a shop that takes empties back need to know four things. Accept every in-scope empty (single-use plastic bottles and cans, 150 ml to 3 litres, with the scheme logo), wherever it was bought. Refund 20p for each. Refuse containers that are dirty, not empty, damaged or can't be identified, and unusually large amounts. Bag and tag what you accept for collection. Drinks bought before 1 October 2027 carry no deposit, so there's nothing to refund on them.

Planned course price: £19 per shop, one-off, or included in the Plus plan estimate. The sample lesson, quiz and till card below are free.

The printable staff sheet comes with the paid DRS Ready Pack. The till card below is free.

Course outline

  1. 1
    What the deposit is.

    A flat 20p on every plastic (PET) bottle and metal can from 150 ml to 3 litres, including each can in a multipack. The shop earns a handling fee per empty (3p by hand). E4C

  2. 2
    What to accept and refuse.

    You must take back every in-scope container a customer brings, wherever they bought it, with a few legal exceptions. Sample lesson below

  3. 3
    Refunding the customer.

    By hand: count the accepted empties and refund 20p each at the till. With a machine: the customer brings you a voucher, which you redeem at the till. E4C FAQ, RVM spec, p.6

  4. 4
    Bagging, tagging and storing.

    Manual returns are checked, bagged, tagged and stored for collection. Keep bags somewhere safe and dry. Bag supply details aren't published yet. unconfirmed

  5. 5
    Collections.

    Exchange for Change's appointed partners (e.g. SUEZ, CIRQLR, Bywaters, Re.Group, Re-Gen) collect. Never hand bags to anyone who isn't an official collector. Who covers you

  6. 6
    Records and counts.

    Log every empty and every bag so the shop gets paid correctly, and spot gaps early.

  7. 7
    Awkward moments.

    Bulk returns, upset customers, faith-based refusals of alcohol containers, old pre-launch stock, and visitors with Welsh glass or Irish containers.

Free help also exists. Exchange for Change runs free webinars, with an autumn series announced; register interest. ACS has a free shop guide. Ours is different: short, made for the till, with a quiz and a record of who's trained.

After the lessons

  • An 8-question quiz (try it below)
  • A printable till card
  • Each trainee's name and date recorded on the dashboard

Sample lesson 2 of 7

What to accept and what to refuse

In the scheme (all four UK nations, from 1 October 2027): single-use drinks containers made wholly or mainly of PET plastic, aluminium or steel, from 150 ml to 3 litres, showing the scheme logo and a scheme barcode. Not in: glass (except in Wales, see below), milk-type plastic (HDPE), cartons and refillables. E4C criteria, p.3, E4C FAQ, GOV.UK Last checked: 12 Oct 2026

Accept

  • Shows the scheme logo and barcode
  • Empty
  • In one piece (a missing lid is fine)
  • Bought anywhere, not just from you: you must take back every in-scope container a customer returns E4C, p.4

You may refuse

  • No scheme logo or barcode, so you can't identify it (including pre-launch stock)
  • Dirty (soiled)
  • Not empty
  • Crushed or broken (not intact)
  • Alcoholic-drink containers, if your shop doesn't sell alcohol for reasons of faith or belief E4C, p.13
  • Far more than a customer would normally buy from you in one go

These refusal reasons are in the law for England and Northern Ireland (regulation 10). legislation.gov.uk Scotland has its own regulations, which we haven't checked line by line yet unverified. Exchange for Change points Scottish shops to SEPA.

Tricky cases

  • Crushed can: refuse. It isn't intact, and machines and counting centres can't read it. In Romania, damaged containers often went unpaid. source
  • Bottle bought before 1 October 2027: no scheme logo, no deposit was paid, so it can't be redeemed. E4C FAQ
  • Irish bottle with only the Re-turn logo (common near the NI border): without the UK scheme logo you can't identify it as a UK returnable, so refuse our reading of reg. 10; confirm with E4C.
  • Glass bottle: not in the scheme in England, Scotland or NI. Wales is different: single-use glass is in scope there, but with no deposit or label until October 2031. E4C FAQ, Welsh Government
  • Six-pack of cans: six deposits (6 x 20p) are charged at the till, and each can is returned and refunded separately. E4C FAQ

Say it nicely: "Sorry, I can't take this one. It's [crushed / not empty / not in the scheme]. You can put it in your home recycling."

Free sample video, 1 min 53 s

Video 2: Accept or refuse, the 10-second check

A short till-side scene showing how to check an empty in about ten seconds, with captions. The other five videos come with the course.

Voices are computer-generated.

Read the transcript

Narrator: CheersEmpties staff training. Video two: accept or refuse, the ten-second check.

Mr Hughes: Morning! I've got a few for you.

Mia: Sam, do I take all of these?

Sam: Let's do the ten-second check.

Narrator: One: look for the scheme logo and barcode. No logo means you can't identify it as a scheme container, so you can refuse it. That includes drinks bought before the scheme started. Two: is it empty? Give it a shake. Three: is it in one piece? A crushed or broken container can be refused, but a missing lid is fine. Four: is it a plastic bottle or a can, between 150 millilitres and 3 litres? Glass and milk-type bottles aren't in the scheme, except glass in Wales, which carries no deposit until 2031.

Mia: Sorry, I can't take this one. It's crushed. You can pop it in your recycling at home.

Mr Hughes: Fair enough!

Narrator: You can also refuse dirty containers, alcohol containers if your shop doesn't sell alcohol for reasons of faith or belief, and amounts far bigger than a customer would normally buy in one go. These are the rules for England and Northern Ireland. Scotland has its own regulations, still to be confirmed here.

Sam: And remember: if it passes the check, we take it back, even if they bought it somewhere else. Next time: refunding the customer.

Quick quiz

Printable till card

Empties: 10-second check

  1. Logo? Scheme logo and barcode. No logo = refuse.
  2. Empty? Shake it.
  3. Whole? Not crushed or broken (lid missing is OK).
  4. Type? Plastic (PET) bottle or can, 150 ml to 3 L. Glass and milk bottles aren't in the scheme (Wales differs).
  5. Refund 20p, bag, log. Every time.

Never give bags to anyone who isn't an official collector. Unsure? Ask the manager.

Common questions

Can I refuse to take back some containers?

Yes, on set grounds: the container is dirty, not empty, damaged, or can't be identified as part of the scheme, or the customer brings an unusually large amount. A shop that doesn't sell alcohol for reasons of faith or belief can refuse alcoholic-drink containers.

Sources: reg. 10 (England and NI), E4C criteria, section 4.4, Staff training

Which drinks containers are included?

Single-use drinks containers made wholly or mainly of PET plastic, aluminium or steel, from 150 ml to 3 litres. Glass isn't included in England, Scotland or Northern Ireland. In Wales, single-use glass is included, but carries no deposit or label before October 2031.

Sources: E4C criteria, section 1.1, E4C FAQ

Is glass included in Wales?

Yes. Wales includes single-use glass bottles, but no deposit or scheme label is needed on them before October 2031. Exchange for Change runs the Welsh scheme too. Welsh exemption rules and transition details are not published yet.

Sources: E4C FAQ, Welsh Government

All questions and answers