Who Can Dispose Of Office Furniture?

When you have a large volume of office furniture to get rid of, knowing who can dispose of it can be tough. Here’s a quick guide on places you can dispose of unwanted office furniture yourself, or other people who will be able to help you and your business out. 

If you’re looking to dispose of your office furniture, it’s important to know the regulations around certain methods, particularly when it comes to WEEE disposal. 

As any waste that comes from a commercial activity is classed as business waste (as outlined by the government), you need to have these permits when getting rid of office furniture. Because of this, it is often easier to use another method of disposal. 

What’s more, taking these items to the tip can be tricky as you will need permission to do so by registering as a waste carrier or applying for a waste permit. These actions are not very efficient and can be a waste of your time, especially when there are other options out there. 

Charities are often on the lookout for high-quality pieces of furniture, so if your items aren’t damaged or overly worn, donation could be something to look into. As long as the charity will be able to sell the pieces and make a profit, this option is great for those looking to make a difference. 

To find charities in your area that sell furniture, search online or take a walk through your local city centre. You can then get in touch with each charity to see whether they would be interested in taking some of your unwanted furniture and selling it on. 

It’s also worth asking whether they have a collection service or if you would need to sort out transportation, as some charities offer a free collection service that you could take advantage of if you don’t have a large enough vehicle yourself. 

Here are a few charities that are based throughout the UK and accept furniture donations:

• The British Heart Foundation 
• Emmaus
• Sue Ryder

It’s important to remember that if you’re looking to get rid of a large amount of office furniture, you may need to go to quite a few different charity shops. This is because just one won’t have the space needed to store the furniture and may not believe they will be able to sell all of the pieces. 

Note: The original fire label must be securely attached to all upholstered furniture for charities to accept them.

If your office furniture is largely undamaged and still has life left in it, why not consider selling? This way, not only are you able to get rid of the unwanted items but you can make some extra cash for your business by selling them on. 

The first step to selling used office furniture is looking at the different sites out there. You can search for items that are similar to yours to see how in-demand they are, understand the best prices, and see how the ads have been constructed. 

Using Facebook Marketplace or local selling groups is a great place to sell online for free and will mean most of the potential customers will be nearby to collect the furniture. This will be linked to whatever Facebook account you post from, so you can either make a new one, use a business account, or use your personal profile if you’re happy to. 

This is a very popular choice and works well for reaching a larger audience. It’s easy to use and the site will give you some helpful tips for getting your items more interest, but it does also charge seller fees. 

Another good, and popular, site to sell your unwanted office furniture on. It does not charge listing fees so you get to keep all of the profit. You are able to talk to anyone interested in the items and answer any of their questions easily through email. 

Trying to sell them all together will mean less work for you as you will only need to post one advert, but will limit the number of people interested. Selling them individually means you will most likely get more interest in them, but you need to craft separate adverts and liaise with a few different people. 

These need to be high quality so the potential customers can see exactly what they would be buying. It is also wise to take these photos in good lighting and with a decent camera or smartphone. 

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Try out a few different selling sites to see which one works best for you. Some, like eBay, will take a fee from your profit whereas others may let you advertise for free. There will also be different users from site to site, so if your items are not getting much attention on one then it may be worth switching.

Like most businesses in a competitive industry, selling online focuses on the price of the items. This is especially true if you are selling similar things as others on the site. For example, if you’re selling 10 desk chairs that are priced considerably higher than others, customers are more likely to go for the cheaper option. 

However, don’t go too low either. You’re losing out on money and may make buyers suspicious of the quality of your office furniture. 

One of the most important aspects of selling online is letting buyers know how they’ll receive their item. If you’re happy to deliver locally, make sure you’re advertising this. If it is collection only, you need to ensure this is visible on your ad. 

Bear in mind that posting large items such as office furniture can be very costly, so you need to work out whether it will be worth it and what kind of profit you’ll be able to make.

If your furniture is damaged and not good enough to be donated or sold online, don’t spend time worrying about who can dispose of your office furniture and instead consider our office furniture removal services.

To book our furniture disposal service, or receive a free no-obligation quote, give us a call on 020 8504 2380. As a fully-licensed waste disposal team, we will be able to take your unwanted furniture away in no time (subject to availability).