Searching public rubbish bins for bottles and cans to claim their Beverage Container Return Scheme (BCRS) deposits is illegal, Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said.
In a written parliamentary reply dated 6 October 2026, she said the National Environment Agency (NEA) would take enforcement action. Taking items from public bins and leaving waste or spilling it onto the ground also break the law.
What the Rules Cover
MP Hazlina Abdul Halim had asked how the authorities would address hygiene concerns involving bin searches and people emptying unfinished drinks onto walkways.
The restriction on searching bins already exists in the Environmental Public Health (Public Cleansing) Regulations.
Regulation 10 prohibits digging through rubbish in bins or taking anything out. Its scope also includes refuse storage facilities, carts and vehicles. The regulations allow the Director-General to grant exemptions to NEA employees and other people or groups.
No Plans for Liquid Disposal Facilities
Hazlina also asked about providing separate container holders and facilities for discarding liquids at busy locations.
Fu said most people already empty their containers before returning them. On that basis, dedicated liquid disposal facilities at Return Right machines are not planned.
How to Return Containers and Get a Refund
The BCRS began on 1 April 2026. Consumers pay a 10-cent deposit on eligible drinks and can recover it by returning the containers.
The scheme covers regulated drinks in plastic or metal containers with capacities from 150ml to 3 litres. Check for the BCRS Deposit Mark before taking a bottle or can to a return machine.
NEA’s guidance is to keep containers intact, with no liquid inside and a barcode the machine can read. Crushing or flattening them can prevent verification. Containers without the deposit mark do not qualify for a refund and can instead go through existing recycling channels.
In a separate parliamentary reply on 6 October, Fu said about 98% of transactions in September resulted in an immediate refund. The share of unsuccessful returns had fallen to 2%, compared with 5% over the scheme’s first five months.
She said problems could arise when containers were crushed, placed incorrectly on the machine’s conveyor belt, or affected by machine faults.
People who cannot return an eligible container can contact scheme operator BCRS Ltd for help. Those whose refund does not come through can submit a claim through its refund portal or email the operator with their transaction details.
