Squaring the Circular – Lease-Rent or Purchase

Would you lease or rent a chair?

Watch this great video from ZeroWaste Scotland showing an excellent illustration of a Circular Economy.

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From the video you will have seen how important a circular economy model is for this and future generations. In our Squaring the Circular series, we are highlighting different areas of our society at a community level, to help citizens in communities to transition to a new way of Circular Living, moving away from the old world where we’ve been living for a long time.

Now what is clear in video is that Governments like Scotland are encouraging the move to a Circular Economy and this is in line with many Manufacturers who are already preparing a leasing model.  This is concerning and we’re hoping to show you why.

It means you will no longer own something and you may well be prevented from repairing it, whether it’s a piece of furniture, clothing or an electrical item.

A Take Back mentality, where you return your old items when buying new ones, will allow the store to support and control, the movement of goods and the growth of their own profits.  However this takes away the consumers choice and their potential influence over consumption at a local level, where people want to look after the environment and tackle poverty.    Do you want to lease a chair for example, as shown in the video?  Perhaps maybe not just a simple chair, but a designer branded chair that should be designed for easy disassembly which could even allow a part of the chair to be returned, rather than the whole chair.  Couldn’t that be done locally? We think so.

So what’s so Good about renting or leasing?

The good things about leasing is that all repair costs, replacements and services will likely be covered.  The cost of total ownership is unknown, unless you have a fixed term ,but that could be less than the purchase and repair of the same product. It may also include free collection at end of life, or new and different styles or colours could be offered at additional or optional extra costs.   Lets take a look and weigh up the Pros and Cons.

So what’s so bad about renting?

• Mostly it places the jobs elsewhere and not in the local Community.
• Contractually when renting or buying an item you may not be able to self repair
• You can’t perhaps give or sell it to someone else (T’s&C’s may apply)
• You’ll have less disposable income, when compared with outright purchase
• You’ve lost the choice to purchase and own outright
• You lose the resale value of your old item, when replacing with a new one
• The skills will belong centrally to the company and not in the community
• It could be expensive when compared to a purchase
• It could prevent competition
• From a Safety perspective if refurbished/repaired, was it a competent person & are components genuine?
• You’ll likely be offered upgrades which could in the long run could limit choice and be even more expensive
• It gives the manufacturers control of the market, used products and spares
• When repaired in the home, harms environment through transport energy demands, pollution and increased emissions
• Cost of ending the contract due to unforeseen circumstances.
• Stuck in an expensive contract.
• Temptations to put the costs on a Credit Card
• Prevents cost effective local recycling and upcycling and generating used spares

HERE IS A REAL RENTAL COMPARISON

So what’s so good about it?

• No worries or additional costs on repairs
• Delivered and installed? Hopefully by a Competent Person who is insured.

Lets try a new Laptop

In the end you have to make your own mind up where your priorities lie.  However LocalitEEE plans to let every Member rent their own items, including clothes from where you live.  Keep in touch with us if you want to know more.

According to a recent article by Moneyfacts Consumer debt is being used by low-income households at the fastest rate since the financial crisis over a decade ago, research published by the Resolution Foundation reveals.

As a society we must learn to engage in a true circular economy to make all products and materials last as long as we can.  We need to protect the planet and each other through this and future generations. We need to take ownership of where we live and make the important democratic decisions that matters to us, where we live.

Cutting waste furniture for instance can create up to 157,000 jobs and save around six million tonnes of CO2.  Why can’t we do this in our own communities and put the jobs back where you live, rather than use companies outside your local housing estates.

EEESafe & LocalitEEE are building a Community Platform where the Community owns  a stake in taking control in a Responsible Consumption model. A Platform that creates money and a local currency to help tackle poverty, and where the transparency of where it goes locally, can be seen and decided by the people who live there.

Access to this starts with our updated Appliance Safety Register. www.registeryourappliance.uk 

Working with EEESafe we need to ensure we prevent fires in homes from Product Recalls, and our Register will let you drop your appliance into your own LocalitEEE Online Community Shop

It will open in April 2025 but if you’d like to be notified please complete the form below and fill in the comment.