Oxford City Council has paused fridge and freezer collections until late September, and county recycling centres now take one booking every three months.

If your fridge or freezer dies in Oxford this month, both of the usual ways of getting rid of it have been cut back within a fortnight of each other.

Oxford City Council has stopped taking new bulky waste bookings for fridges and freezers, including American style fridge freezers. It expects bookings to reopen in late September 2026, and is asking residents to hold on to the appliance until then.

Oxfordshire County Council has separately limited what its seven household waste recycling centres will take. From 19 August:

  • Households get one fridge or freezer booking every three months, though you can bring up to two of the items on each booking.
  • Slot availability now shows one week ahead instead of the usual two.
  • Every other material and every other type of booking is unaffected.

Redbridge, on Old Abingdon Road, OX1 4XG, is the recycling centre inside the city boundary. It is one of seven in the county.

Why it has happened

The county council says the country has run short of the specialist plants that process and recycle these appliances. Fridges and freezers cannot go through ordinary waste treatment because of the gases in the coolant and the insulating foam, so they need dedicated facilities.

“Our capacity for treatment nationally has been reduced by a third,” said Councillor Laura Gordon, the county council’s cabinet member for environment and economy. She said she had written to the government suggesting steps it could take at a national level.

The county has also asked Oxfordshire’s district and city councils to put similar temporary limits on their bulky waste collections, which is what Oxford City Council has now done. The city’s pause is a full stop on new bookings rather than a cap.

This is the second restriction in two weeks. On 6 August the county council stopped accepting fridges and freezers from people living outside Oxfordshire to prioritise its own residents.

Where that leaves an Oxford household

The three ways to get rid of a fridge in Oxford, and their status Three routes. City council bulky waste collection: paused, new bookings expected to reopen late September 2026. Redbridge recycling centre: open but limited to one booking every three months, up to two items, booking one week ahead. Retailer take-back: available, like-for-like collection must be offered, a charge may apply. Getting rid of a fridge or freezer in Oxford, 20 August 2026 Sources: Oxford City Council bulky waste page; Oxfordshire County Council, 19 August 2026. City bulky collection PAUSED No new bookings taken for fridges or freezers. Expected to reopen late September 2026. Other bulky items unaffected. Redbridge tip LIMITED One booking every three months. Up to two items a visit. Slots show one week ahead. Proof of address needed. Retailer take-back OPEN Retailers must offer a like-for-like collection when you buy a replacement. They may charge for it. Ask before you order. A working appliance can also be resold or donated, which takes it out of the waste stream entirely. Graphic by The Oxford Post.
The three disposal routes and where each one stood on 20 August 2026.

What it means for you

If the appliance still works, do not put it in the waste stream at all. Both councils point at reselling or donating it, and that route has no queue and no booking.

If you are buying a replacement, ask about take-back before you order. Retailers must offer a like-for-like collection service when they deliver a new appliance. They are allowed to charge for collecting from the home, so get the price in advance rather than at the door.

If you are taking it to Redbridge yourself, book first and go early. Slots only appear a week ahead now, so the useful window is narrow. Bring proof of address, such as a driving licence or a recent utility or council tax bill: visitors from outside the county are charged £15. Bookings can be made by phone on 01865 519800, 8.45am to 5pm Monday to Thursday and 8.45am to 4pm on Friday, if you cannot book online.

If you were relying on the city council collecting it, you will be waiting. New bookings are expected to reopen in late September. Oxford residents normally get two free bulky waste collections a year with up to three items each, and that service is still running for everything else on the list, including washing machines, ovens, sofas and mattresses.

Do not leave it on the street. Fly-tipping is an offence, and a dumped fridge is one of the more expensive items a council has to recover.

Both councils say the restrictions are temporary and under review. Neither has given a national end date, because neither controls the treatment capacity that caused it.

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