Getting Rid of Confidential Waste

[ramblingsonthego]

We move next week (yayyyy), and having the big sort out before the movers come in and pack. I have a big bin bag full of confidential waste (bank statements, council tax bills, tax letters etc....) and no shredder. We don't have a garden to burn it either. Normally I dump it over a few days in the confidential waste at work, but working from home, that isn't an option this time.

Does anyone know a solution? How much would a waste company charge to collect one bin bag of confidential waste? My Mum has a teeny tiny shredder that does about 10 pages and then needs an hours rest so it would take months to do it at her house (support bubble so in the tier rules). Has anyone else any ideas?

I would just put it in the bin directly before the refuse collector comes and then watch to make sure it went straight in the truck.

There’s a stamp thing you can get from Amazon, rolls ‘confidential’ over pertinent parts like addresses etc. on paperwork. Then you can just bin it/recycle. It’s very effective. I haven’t used my shredder since I got it.

You could soak it in a bucket of water for a few days. Maybe some sort of bleach or soap to help it along. Will hopefully disintegrate enough to be kept confidential.

Lots of removal companies have licenses to get rid of confidential waste. I moved my parents in September and the removal company arrived with special bags. I put the files in the bags and that was that.

Ask your removal company

you could put it into a plastic bucket mix some ink in water in another bucket pour it over the paperwork and leave it to soak in overnight then put it in the recycling

Some great ideas I haven't thought about on here! Glad I asked. I thought this must be a common thing with moving! I also have realised I need to do a 6 monthly sort out of all the household paperwork and not the every 3 years I have been doing

With a big pile, I tear up the pages by hand across sensitive information, usually into four or eight pieces maybe scrunch them up maybe not then put them all in a bin bag, shake it up and sometimes add a mug of water then put in black bin as normal. Is quicker than it sounds.

One of the joys of a log burner. I've spent today clearing out old paperwork

If you would be shopping in store anyway, go to a large supermarket, there's a decent chance they have shredders.

If not, then does it really hurt to just move with it?

We had to do this for work when packing up our office, I had to drop it off at a warehouse and it cost £23 to dispose of one big bag, you even got a certificate to say it had been done!

Is your household waste incinerated? If so it'll go straight from the bin to the truck to a giant pit that is gradually burnt. No one will get near it.

I rip mine up and put it at the bottom of the bin. The bin only goes outside on collection day.

Stick it in the bath

musthaveideas.co.uk/pages/data-defender-web

I think you are over thinking this - everyone has paperwork like this. Some ideas here or do what most people do - rip it up making sure you too through the personal details and bin it.

There are quite a few firms which will deal with domestic waste for shredding. Try asking on a local Facebook page. We use one and get sacks provided. It's so much easier than using our page by page shredder.

I got in touch with our removals and they will shred and give a certificate of destruction for £20. So we are going with that!

Get a small portable fire pit for this in the future?

My local Office Supplies shop will dispose of confidential waste. Something like £1.50 per kg if I remember correctly.