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Bywaters comparison

Bywaters comparison: Capital Recycle vs Bywaters for commercial waste in London

Bywaters comparison: Capital Recycle vs Bywaters on what a business asks before it signs: where they collect, what containers they supply, how the charges are structured, how fast they start, what the published terms say, and who issues the paperwork. Every statement about Bywaters is taken from its own published pages and dated. We are the other company on this page, so weigh what we say accordingly.
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Who this comparison is for

A business in London with one site, or a handful, that puts out pre-paid sacks or runs one to four wheelie bins. If you manage property for a landlord, run a large estate or need bespoke sustainability reporting, Bywaters is built for that and this page says so.

The two companies

Bywaters is Bywaters (Leyton) Ltd, a family-owned London company incorporated in 1952 with origins in 1918, based in Bow, E3. It states 3,000+ customers in London, over 300,000 collections a year and clients serviced seven days a week, with recycling facilities in East London. It lists ISO 9001, 14001, 45001 and 50001, FORS Gold, CHAS, Achilles, Constructionline Silver and SafeContractor, and describes "Zero Waste Direct to Landfill", "Solar Powered Facilities", "Dedicated Sustainability Managers" and "Bespoke Reporting". Its own pages: bywaters.co.uk (nofollow).
Capital Recycle Ltd is a London commercial waste collector with 250+ active customers, rated ★4.8 on Trustpilot. We collect sacks and bins across central London and the WD postcodes on our caged tippers, start within 24 to 48 hours from sack stock we hold ourselves, and issue the annual Waste Transfer Note for every stream we collect. Upper Tier waste carrier CBDU466346. £5m public liability.

Bywaters features and services, side by side

Capital RecycleBywaters (as published, read 2 Nov 2026)
London coverageCentral London and the WD postcodes; collection frequency agreed per siteBorough service pages for Westminster, the City, Camden, Islington, Hackney, Tower Hamlets, Newham, Greenwich, Enfield, Waltham Forest, Southwark, Lewisham, Redbridge, Haringey, Bromley, Wandsworth and Lambeth
SacksPre-paid general waste and mixed recycling sacks, priced per sack by weekly volume; delivered from stock we holdA pre-paid sack service for central London is not published on its site
Bins240, 360, 660 and 1100 litre; one fixed monthly figure per bin, no rental line, no environmental levy, no fuel surcharge120, 240, 770 and 1100 litre wheelie bins, collected weekly or daily; food 120 and 240 litre; glass 240 litre
Other streamsGlass as a dedicated stream; food as a bagged stream; cardboard by arrangement; specialist streams through one of our partnersCardboard through mixed recycling or dedicated bins; 99 waste streams stated; compactors, balers, skips
How pricing is structuredSacks per sack by volume; bins one monthly figure per bin; the agreement shows every line before you signTailored quote; bin hire; excess waste charged at a pre-agreed rate
How to startPhone or form; service starts within 24 to 48 hours; sacks from our own stock, bins on the agreed start dateQuotation form, then a recycling expert contacts you; lead time not published
Term and notice12-month agreement that renews unless you give 60 days' notice before the renewal date, or a rolling monthly option at a higher rate that you can end any month. The agreement is sent before you commitMinimum term, notice period and exit terms are not published on its site; ask for them in writing before you sign
Waste Transfer NoteAnnual WTN Service, £65 + VAT per stream, issued and renewed by usNot described on the service pages
Diversion claim98% diversion from landfill"Zero Waste Direct to Landfill"
CertificationsUpper Tier carrier CBDU466346; £5m public liabilityISO 9001, 14001, 45001, 50001; FORS Gold; CHAS; Achilles; Constructionline Silver; SafeContractor
Missed collectionCall 0207 101 4003 and speak to the person who runs the round020 7001 6000 or email; issue tracking in its BRAD reporting system; recovery time not published
Changing a bin or a frequencyLike-for-like bin swap on 24 hours' notice, no crossover periodThrough your account contact, per its pages
Public reviewsTrustpilot ★4.8Trustpilot, linked in the sources

Choose Bywaters if

  • You manage property or an estate and need one supplier for bins, compactors, balers and skips.
  • You want a dedicated sustainability manager and bespoke reporting for an ESG programme.
  • Your procurement asks for FORS Gold, ISO 50001, Achilles or Constructionline by name.
  • Your sites are in East London, close to its facilities.

Choose Capital Recycle if

If you want a collection that turns up on the day it is booked, and a team you can reach when something needs sorting, choose Capital Recycle.
  • You want a missed or late collection sorted by a person who can act: a call to 0207 101 4003 reaches the person who runs your round, not a ticket queue or a call centre that cannot contact the driver.
  • You have one London site, or a few, with sacks or one to four bins.
  • You want to start this week, with the containers actually on site: sacks from our own stock within 24 to 48 hours, bins delivered on the agreed start date, and a damaged bin swapped like for like on 24 hours' notice.
  • You want the bin price to be the whole price: one fixed monthly figure, no rental line, no levy, no fuel surcharge, so there is no lift count on the invoice to argue over.
  • You want an invoice you can read against your agreement: one line per bin or per sack order, and the term and notice shown before you sign, with a reminder from us 90 days before the renewal date.
  • You want us to issue and renew the Waste Transfer Note, so the paperwork a landlord or auditor asks for is already there.

How switching works

  1. Check the notice window on your current agreement first. The window, not the new supplier, decides when you can move.
  2. Tell us your postcode, the containers you use and your weekly volume. We confirm a start date within 24 to 48 hours.
  3. We deliver sacks or bins on the agreed date. If you are moving from bins, the new bins go in as the old ones go out; there is no period with two sets on site.
  4. We issue the Waste Transfer Note for each stream at the start, then renew it annually.
The full checklist is in our guide: How to switch commercial waste provider.

Common questions

What are Bywaters' notice terms?

Not published on its site, as read on 2 November 2026. Ask for the agreement in writing and read the term, renewal and notice clauses before you sign, with any supplier.

Does Bywaters collect sacks?

Its site does not publish a pre-paid sack service for central London. Ask them directly if that is what you need; we do collect sacks.

Sacks or bins?

Sacks suit a site with no storage and a small daily volume. Bins suit a site with a bin store and steady volume. Our guide on bags or bins for commercial waste covers the trade-offs.

Do you cover my postcode?

Central London and the WD postcodes. Call 0207 101 4003 with your postcode and we will tell you straight away.

How long is your agreement?

12 months as standard, renewing unless you give 60 days' notice before the renewal date, or rolling monthly at a higher rate. You see the agreement before you sign.

Who do I call if a collection is missed?

0207 101 4003. You speak to the person who runs the round.

Who published this

Capital Recycle Ltd wrote this page. We compete with Bywaters for bin customers in London, so read it as one competitor writing about another. We are an agile, independent London collector with our own caged tippers and our own sack stock. Everything we say about Bywaters comes from its own published pages, listed below with the date we read them, and we have not quoted any Bywaters price. Our carrier registration CBDU466346 is on the public register, so check us as well.
Facts checked 2 November 2026.

Sources