{"id":945339,"date":"2026-10-29T16:14:15","date_gmt":"2026-10-29T16:14:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/945339\/"},"modified":"2026-10-29T16:14:15","modified_gmt":"2026-10-29T16:14:15","slug":"stompers-lament-bcrs-and-return-right-machine-issues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/945339\/","title":{"rendered":"Stompers lament BCRS and Return Right machine issues"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome to Stomping Ground<\/a> \u2014 a space where Stompers share reflections, personal essays and social commentaries that spark conversation and insight.<\/p>\n

After the launch of the Beverage Container Return Scheme (BCRS), people across Singapore were quick to start collecting bottles and cans for recycling to get the 10-cent refund.<\/p>\n

Some even managed to collect and return so many that they raked more than $1,000 worth of refunds<\/a>.<\/p>\n

However, the experience has not been all that pleasant for everyone.<\/p>\n

Machine did not accept bottles due to \u2018incorrect weight\u2019<\/p>\n

Stomper AC was trying to return two plastic bottles at the Return Right vending machine at the FairPrice outlet in Clarke Quay on the morning of Oct 22 when he encountered an error.<\/p>\n

Scroll to continue reading<\/p>\n

He said that the machine would not accept both his bottles as \u201cthe weight was incorrect\u201d.<\/p>\n

Curious about what that might mean, he peeked into the opening and noticed what looked like food scraps on the conveyor belt, which he guessed caused the weight issue.<\/p>\n

\"Stompers<\/p>\n

Stomper AC thinks that food scraps on the conveyor belt could affect the weight of the recyclable, which determines whether it gets accepted or rejected.<\/p>\n

PHOTO: STOMP<\/p>\n

\u201cLooks like it was never cleaned before. Smells like rotten garbage,\u201d remarked the Stomper.<\/p>\n

Still hoping to get his refund, AC walked to the Cold Storage outlet at UE Square nearby, but saw that the machine was full and not accepting any bottles.<\/p>\n

On a separate occasion, on Oct 29, AC went to the Return Right machine at his local FairPrice at Killiney to deposit some bottles when he found that it was \u201ctemporarily unavailable\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"Stompers<\/p>\n

AC wanted to deposit bottles, only to realise that the machine was \u201ctemporarily unavailable\u201d.<\/p>\n

PHOTO: STOMP<\/p>\n

Feeling frustrated, he exclaimed: \u201cCan we just scrap this BCRS scheme<\/a> already?\u201d<\/p>\n

Many instances where machines do not accept bottles<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Stomper Tommy shared his experience of getting bottles rejected by the Return Right machine multiple times.<\/p>\n

\"Halloween<\/a><\/p>\n

He told Stomp: \u201cThe BCRS machine works only about 60 per cent of the time. I have encountered many instances where the machine does not accept the bottle and asks me to return it to a recycling bin.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m writing in because I\u2019m fed up with it already,\u201d he said. He felt that there is \u201cno other avenue provided\u201d to receive the 10 cents refund in the event of a faulty barcode on the bottle.<\/p>\n

Tommy claimed he had his bottle rejected at machines across various locations. Most of the time, the reason given was a damaged barcode. But when he checked the bottles, the barcodes appeared fine.<\/p>\n

\"Stompers<\/p>\n

Tommy claims he has had bottles rejected many times for \u201cfaulty barcodes\u201d.<\/p>\n

PHOTO: STOMP<\/p>\n

When a bottle gets rejected, Tommy would simply toss it in a rubbish bin or recycling bin, depending on which one was nearest at the time.<\/p>\n

\u201cI buy three to four bottles a day and I encounter this issue almost every other day,\u201d the Stomper lamented. \u201cThat amounts to a loss of about $4 a month. It\u2019s not a lot, but it adds up. Really frustrating.\u201d<\/p>\n

Users call for improvements to BCRS and Return Right machines<\/p>\n

Despite the issues raised, AC stated that he would still deposit recyclable cans and bottles<\/a> if it were convenient for him.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut the whole process is very inconvenient and inefficient, so I am less likely to do it unless it is on the way for me,\u201d he disclaimed.<\/p>\n

He expressed his hope for the Return Right machines to be improved, or for the authorities to \u201cthink of a better solution for everyone\u201d.<\/p>\n

The sentiment was echoed by Tommy, who suggested additional avenues to obtain refunds: \u201cHave an alternative platform which is convenient for refunding the deposit if the machine does not accept the bottle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Currently, users who encounter issues with receiving refunds may request for it via an online form<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Have your say on Stomping Ground! Write to us at stomp@sph.com.sg or WhatsApp 9384 3761.<\/p>\n

\"Stomp<\/p>\n

Have something to say? Join in!<\/p>\n

Explore more on these topics<\/p>\n

See something interesting? Contribute<\/a> your story to us.<\/p>\n

Get more of Stomp’s latest updates by following us on:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Welcome to Stomping Ground \u2014 a space where Stompers share reflections, personal essays and social commentaries that spark…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":945340,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[64,63,469071,75,213270,3810,51517,29364,469073,128,199724],"class_list":["post-945339","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-bcrs","tag-environment","tag-machines","tag-recycling","tag-refund","tag-refunds","tag-return-right","tag-science","tag-stomping-ground"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/945339","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=945339"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/945339\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/945340"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=945339"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=945339"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=945339"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}