Mattress Disposal And The Law

One downside of a new mattress is disposing of the old one. If you can't give it to a friend or family member, or donate it, mattress disposal is required.

Mattress disposal can be a burden for manufacturers and retailers, too, depending on where they sell their products.

California and the Used Mattress Recovery and Recycling Act - Amended

Mattress disposal is an issue everywhere in the United States.

Primarily because of their size and bulk, old mattresses take up an inordinate amount of space in our landfills. Because of the nature of a used mattress, it is difficult if not impossible to sell them or even give them away in many places. 

However, they are highly recyclable and there are numerous efforts in place throughout the country to promote mattress recycling. 

This is especially true in the populous state in the country, with about 40,000,000 residents, who all have mattresses!

Making Mattress Recycling Required

On September 27, 2013, California’s Senate Bill (SB) 254 was enacted.  Known as the “Used Mattress Recovery and Recycling Act”  the bill authorized the creation of a mattress recycling organization by a qualified industry association, to develop, implement, and administer a mattress recycling program.

This mattress recycling program was named the “Mattress Recycling Council”, or MRC, and it required manufacturers, retailers, and renovators of mattresses to register with the MRC on or before January 1, 2015.

The good news?

The law requires mattress companies to provide California consumers with the option to have their old mattress removed for eco-friendly disposal at no cost to them at the time the new one is delivered or to provide an opportunity for free drop-off of a used mattress. This requirement had two exemptions:

• If the old mattress is contaminated.
• If the new mattress was purchased online and delivered by a common carrier.

The bad news?

Mattress manufacturers and retailers are responsible for providing this old mattress disposal service and it doesn't happen for free.

SB 254 Expanded

Beginning on January 1, 2020, the state of California expanded the recycling program to include futons.

This means that manufacturers, distributors, and retailers selling futons to California consumers must follow the same process, as well as collecting a $10.50 MRC fee from customers on each futon sold.

SB 254 Amended

Recently, California's law SB 254 was amended by the passage of Assembly Bill (AB) 187.

Beginning on January 1, 2021, the amendment requires that any company that sells a mattress or futon to a customer living in California must offer free pick up and recycling of the customer's old mattress or futon - at no additional charge to the customer - within 30 days of delivery of the new product.

In addition, the amendment has removed the exception of online purchases and common carrier deliveries.

That means that all the online, e-commerce mattress and futon companies who sell their products to California customers must now offer futon and mattress removal and recycling at their own expense. 

Commercial Options for Required Mattress Pick Up and Disposal

It is highly unlikely that companies who have built their businesses selling mattresses (or futons) online have any means to offer pick up, removal, and recycling of their products throughout the state of California. 

The logistics alone could be overwhelming and the costs associated with carrying out such an enterprise could easily diminish or eliminate any profit margin for their sales in California. 

Fortunately, Junk King is well positioned to provide these services and to function as an enterprise-level strategic partner for mattress disposal. Considering a national account with Junk king can be a cost-saving move and one that can be easily accommodated.

The Team to Call When You Need To Get Rid of Your Own Mattress

Junk King provides an efficient, safe and eco-friendly mattress disposal service to make the whole process easy for you.

Our experienced mattress removal team will have the manpower to haul off that mattress and bed frame without damaging any of your home on the way out. We do all the heavy lifting so there's no need to carry items out to the curb and leave them as an eyesore for your neighbors.

Finally, we’ll make sure that the mattress or bed is disposed of at a proper recycling facility so that it doesn’t do any harm to our ecosystem.

Ready to get rid of your old mattress? It’s as simple as 1, 2, 3.

You can make an appointment by booking online above or by calling 1.888.888.JUNK (5865) or simply booking online.

Our professional and insured mattress disposal team will show up at your home or office; we call 15 minutes before we arrive on site and we’ll give you a free estimate based on how much room your items take up in our truck. You point and we haul your old mattress and other items into our junk removal trucks, with no hidden fees.