|
One of the biggest issues you will have to deal with if you are involved with a house or office clearance is the furniture. This can mean anything from sofas and settees, to tables and chairs, to filing cabinets and desks, and a lot more besides.
Here we will take you through the legal position, plus give you an idea of what happens to your furniture if you opt to use ASAP Clearances – whether it’s from an office clearance in Potters Bar, a house clearance in Bushey, or any other homes or businesses in North London.
Who Owns the Furniture?
If the house or office is being sold on, then the furniture is not usually included as part of the sale price. It can be negotiated separately between the vendor and the buyer, though. However, home’s new owner may not wish to have it – either because they don’t like its age or style, or because they already have some of their own. This puts the onus on the vendor to do something with it.
The same is true if the house or office isn’t being sold on but because there just isn’t the room for it any longer. This is particularly true of probate house clearances where it will be included as part of a deceased person’s estate, and the beneficiaries don’t have space for it in their own home.
What Happens if You Use ASAP Clearances
Donation – we always try to make sure that every item can be found a new home. This means giving it to individuals – we have a network of contacts who we can get in touch with if we think we can ‘place’ something – or to local charity shops or auctions. This applies to office furniture as well as domestic furniture.
Reusing – it may be possible to break down some of the items and upcycle them for use as another piece of furniture. Remember not everything needs to be used for its original intended purpose and creative people can find all sorts of uses for the most unpromising of items.
Landfill or Incineration – there will still be a few items which may cause a problem, and which may need to be permanently disposed of. For instance, anything with upholstered seating (which includes sofas, beds and padded chairs) could contain Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs); these are chemical compounds which were used because they were a fire deterrent.
However, these compounds don’t break down very easily and can still damage the environment if sent to landfill so may need to be incinerated. Despite this, they can still be sent to charity shops if they are thought to be in a good enough condition for resale.
You may also have an issue if you try to dispose of these yourself as your local waste site may not accept them. This also applies if your office or house clearance includes any larger electrical items, as there are rules in place for these as well (the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations of 2013).
At ASAP Clearances we are a licensed waste carrier based in North London and so are legally allowed to deal with both older furniture containing POPs, and larger electrical items.
Contacting ASAP Clearances
Whatever happens, we will be able to advise you of your options; and sending items to landfill is always our last resort. And remember, aside from the legal and environmental reasons, there’s another very good reason to use ASAP Clearances – just think of all the heavy lifting you’ll be avoiding if you use experienced professionals like us!
At ASAP Clearances we pride ourselves on our speedy, efficient response, as well as our sensitivity – any house clearances can come at an extremely difficult time for you, given that they often involve the death of a family member or friend.
If you would like to know more about any of our services – whether it’s probate or hoarding house clearances, office clearances, or garden waste clearance – then you can contact us by following this link. You can also call us on 020 3475 0508.