Can you recycle suitcases & bags?
💚 Reuse or donate
Donate usable ones (charities need them for care leavers and refugees); broken ones are general waste.
Charities supporting refugees, care leavers and homeless people specifically request suitcases and holdalls. Charity shops sell good ones. Broken luggage is mixed-material general waste (recycling centre).
Tips
- Search 'suitcase donation [your town]' — refugee charities collect
Which bin does it go in?
Donate usable ones (charities need them for care leavers and refugees); broken ones are general waste.
Before throwing it away, see reuse, repair and donation routes.
Background: What goes in each household bin?.
Also searched as: luggage, holdalls, handbags, backpacks.
✓ Checked against current UK guidance: 14 Jul 2026. Spot an error or an out-of-date rule?