FAQs
Your questions about IT asset disposal, answered
Collection, cost, data destruction, paperwork, reuse and carbon. If your question is not here, ask us and we will answer it.
Collections, cost and rebates
How much does IT disposal cost?
Collection is free when there is enough reusable value in the load to cover the cost of doing the job. Where there is more than enough, you may get money back. Where there is not, we tell you what it would cost and agree it with you before anything is booked.
Can I get money back?
Sometimes. Collection is free when there is enough reusable value in the load to cover the cost of doing the job. Where there is more than enough, you may get money back. Where there is not, we tell you what it would cost and agree it with you before anything is booked. How we assess value.
How quickly can you collect?
Often within days of your enquiry. Larger or multi-site projects need longer, because the logistics take planning. Tell us what you have and where it is, and we will give you a date.
Can you collect from more than one site?
Yes. We will work out a viable approach with you, which can include keeping each site’s devices separate through the process so your reporting stays accurate site by site. We can give you a separate report for each site, one combined report, or a bit of both. We have done this for a council, with a separate audit trail for each site. Read the case study.
Where do you cover?
We collect across the UK. Most of our work is along the M4 corridor and in the south of England, and we take on national projects depending on the job.
Do you collect in Swindon and the surrounding towns?
Yes. We cover Swindon and the surrounding towns: Marlborough, Wootton Bassett, Highworth, Cricklade and Chiseldon, and out along the M4 to Newbury and Reading. We also collect across the rest of the UK.
Is there anything we need to do before you collect?
Two things, and they are what most often holds a collection up. Release anything still locked to a cloud account or a mobile device management enrolment, and clear any BIOS passwords.
Can we include staff personal devices in a collection?
Yes. Keep them separate from the business equipment on the day, so your own reporting stays accurate.
Data destruction and security
What happens to the data on our old computers?
Every drive is erased to current NCSC guidance. You receive a Certificate of Data Destruction within 28 working days of collection, along with a data wiping report that lists each drive and the wiping method used on it.
How is data erased?
Every drive is erased to current NCSC guidance, using ADISA-certified erasure software, and verified at bit level. We can also physically destroy drives if you need us to, and any drive that fails erasure is physically destroyed.
What if we need drives destroyed rather than wiped?
Tell us when you enquire. Any drive that fails erasure is physically destroyed, and so is any drive where you would rather have destruction than a wipe. If your organisation has specific requirements for how destruction is carried out, we will confirm what we can do before you book.
Who collects the equipment?
Our own staff, in our own tracked vehicles, a minimum of two on every collection. All operational staff are security vetted with enhanced DBS as standard. We rarely use subcontractors for collection. If we did, we would confirm it in writing with you first, and we would typically oversee the other company doing the work.
Are your vehicles and collection staff secure?
Our vehicles are tracked and fitted with cameras, and they hold the chain of custody from your door to our processing site. A minimum of two security vetted staff attend every collection, with enhanced DBS checks standard for operational staff. We rarely use subcontractors for collection. If we did, we would confirm it in writing with you first, and we would typically oversee the other company doing the work.
Paperwork, certifications and insurance
What paperwork do I get?
A Waste Transfer Note on the day of collection. An itemised asset list and a Certificate of Carbon Reduction within 21 working days after collection. A certificate for each wiped drive, plus one overall Certificate of Data Destruction, within 28 working days. See the samples.
Which certifications do you hold?
ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 27001, and we are a registered waste carrier. See the certifications.
Are you a registered waste carrier?
Yes, upper tier. The licence number is on our certifications page, with the rest of our credentials.
What insurance do you hold?
Cover is held for professional indemnity, goods in transit, public liability and cyber. Limits and schedules on request.
Reuse, recycling and carbon
What happens to equipment that still works?
It is tested and refurbished rather than shredded, then sold or donated to new owners across the UK. That is the point of the process rather than a by-product of it, and it is what makes free collection possible.
How much of our equipment gets reused rather than recycled?
Reuse comes first. We reuse and repurpose as much as possible, and recycle what is left. Most items are reused or repurposed, though it varies from collection to collection with the age and condition of the equipment.
Do you send anything to landfill?
None of the equipment we collect from clients goes to landfill. It is reused or recycled. The only waste we send to landfill is our own business waste, such as packaging and staff food waste.
Do you report on carbon?
Yes. A Certificate of Carbon Reduction, calculated from your itemised list rather than an estimate, is available within 21 working days after your collection. You can also see an estimate for your own equipment with our free CO2 calculator.
Can we use your report for Scope 3 reporting?
Yes, the figures we provide are for you to use as needed.
MSPs, resellers and public sector
Do you work with MSPs and IT resellers?
Yes. Certificates carry your end customer's information where you provide it, but the collection location shown is your own address. Collections can often be booked for the next day.
Can you run one collection for several of our clients?
Yes. We did exactly that for an MSP and six of its clients, and each one received its own paperwork. Read the case study.
Whose details are on the certificates?
Certificates carry your end customer’s details where you provide them. The collection location shows your address rather than the client site.
Will you compete with us for our clients’ IT support?
No. We specialise in IT disposal, not managed services.
About Terraguard and ITAD
What does ITAD stand for?
IT asset disposal. It means collecting equipment you no longer need, destroying the data on it, and reusing or recycling the hardware. Some people say IT asset disposition.
How long have you been doing this?
Terraguard has been operating since 2024, bringing together a collective 80+ years of experience in the industry.
Still have a question?
No obligation. If we are not the right fit we will say so.