Recycling centre permits: commercial type vehicle permit scheme

If the only vehicle you have registered at your address for which you pay council tax to West Berkshire Council is a commercial type vehicle and you have no suitable alternative mode of transport for taking your household waste to a HWRC, you may be eligible for a commercial type vehicle permit.

You can register one commercial type vehicle for your household.

The commercial type vehicle permit will only be valid for the relevant vehicle for a maximum period of one year, after which you would need to update or confirm your details to extend your permit for a further year.
 

 

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What vehicles can/cannot use a commercial type vehicle permit

Commercial type vehicles are typically vehicles registered with the DVLA as a vehicle used for the carriage of goods, having a maximum mass not exceeding 3.5 tonnes (N1).

The council defines these commercial type vehicles as those which fall into any of the below categories:

• are designed to carry goods
• have no rear windows (this means rear windows which are side facing)
• have no rear seats
• have an open back
• have a back which is separate to the main cab area
• is a car-derived van
• has any company sign writing or livery, including cars
• has a gross vehicle weight (GVW) which exceeds 3 tonnes

Please note that this list is not exhaustive.
 

There are no restrictions on how frequently you can visit our centres using a commercial type permit. However, we do advise that you make the most out of each visit to minimise the number of journeys you make to our centres. You can find the layout of each centre on our Newtown Road and Padworth Lane site pages to help you load your car.

You still need to book an appointment before you visit, and we will still only accept Household Waste. 

We monitor the use of our centres to ensure that they are only being used for the disposal and recycling of household waste. You may be questioned by site staff if they suspect that you are disposing of trade, commercial or business waste. You may also be requested to complete a household waste declaration form before you are permitted to deposit your household waste.

 

Vehicles that cannot use a commercial type vehicle permit

If you do not qualify for a commercial type vehicle permit or are using a hire van, you may be able to use our temporary one day pass.

If you have a car, see our car permit scheme page.
 

You cannot use a commercial type vehicle permit for prohibited vehicles:

• vans that weigh more than 3 tonnes
• box type vans
• tippers
• minibuses
• any vehicle with a tail lift (excluding wheelchair accessible vehicles)
• flat-bed vehicles
• horse boxes/trailers
• agricultural vehicles/plant

Vehicles towing a trailer that exceed a combined length of 8.2m (27ft) at Newtown Road or 8.8m (29ft) at Padworth are also prohibited.

Please note that the list above is not exhaustive and site staff will prevent you from entering site if they believe your vehicle is prohibited.

 

How to register

To register for a commercial type vehicle permit, you will need to login or set up a My Account, register your vehicle details and provide supporting documents.

Once you have logged in to your My Account, during the application process, you will need to upload copies or photos of:

• an official document which identifies you as a resident of West Berkshire (proof of address, for example, a utility bill or council tax bill)
• both inside pages of the vehicle registration form or V5

This information is important as the commercial type vehicle permits are vehicle registration-specific. This registration is linked to the address for which you pay your council tax, so we need to check that this is correct before we can issue a permit. 

Once we have received your application and the relevant documentation, we aim to process it within 15 working days.

If your application is successful, you will be notified by email and your permit will show in your My Account. Any cars previously registered against the address for a permit will be withdrawn.

So long as you update or confirm your details at least once a year, your permit will not expire. We will send you annual reminders by email to make sure your information is up to date. 

 

If you don't have internet or an email address

Households who don't have access to the internet can either ask friends or family to register on their behalf, or they can call our customer service team on 01635 519080.

Please be aware that it may take up to 15 working days following receipt of your request for assistance over the phone to set up your permit. Residents are kindly requested to only call if they cannot do it online or do not have a friend or family member who can assist them. Please note that our phone lines are very busy and we would prefer to prioritise helping vulnerable residents.

 

Using your personal information

During the registration process we will collect personal information for the purpose of confirming that you are a West Berkshire resident. We will also use the vehicle registration number(s) you provide to us to verify the vehicle type with the DVLA, to make sure that we issue you the correct type of permit. 

This information will be held in a secure manner. We won't use your information for any other purpose without your permission. We won't hold it longer than we need to.

We will treat any personal information by which you can be identified (ie name, address, email etc) in accordance with the provisions of the Data Protection Act 2018.

You can view our privacy notice here.

 

How to update or amend your car permit details

If you need to amend any details on your permit, log into your My Account and select 'update my recycling centre permit'. Do this before your next visit to a recycling centre.

If you move outside of West Berkshire please cancel your permit via My Account.

 

Non-residents

If you're not a resident of West Berkshire, you can still access both of our HWRCs in a car by paying £9 per visit upon arrival. 

See our non-residents recycling centre page for further information.