Big vape firms launched a range of reusable models which are very similar to the most popular disposable vapes, at similar prices.
By adding a replaceable nicotine pod and a USB recharging port, they can be sold as reusable, but Mr Wright suspects many are still being thrown away.
“We still see a lot of these reusables in the bins, because people have used them as a disposable item,” he says.
The ban has also led to a big increase in the number of different kinds of vapes on the market, as firms launched dozens of new products to try to get round the ban.
“The innovation’s gone crazy to try and get around the ban. Ironically it makes our job of recycling them – if we collect them – much harder,” said Mr Wright.
But Marcus Sexton, chairman of the Independent British Vape Trade Association, argues that the ban has been a success.
“We can see through the data consumers are refilling and recharging devices,” he said.
“So actually if Biffa’s findings are true, this is about disposable products washing through the system, either through illegal traders or through the illegal black market,” he added.