FAQs

At Shred Station® we appreciate you probably won’t understand how our shredding services operate as well as we do. In the first instance, you may find the Frequently Asked Questions below help to answer your question.

If you have a question that is not answered, or you would like more detail on any of the answers displayed here, please contact one of our shredding specialists who will be happy to help.

How secure is your shredding service?

We have some of the highest accreditations possible for a secure shredding provider in the UK, so, the short answer is: extremely secure.

The following outlines some of the areas to show how secure our service is.

  • We have fully trained and vetted staff to BS7858 standard plus additional higher security checks.
  • All our vehicles, whether mobile on-site or off-site shredding, have CCTV security cameras.
  • All of our vehicles are satellite tracked.
  • Our depots are Home Office approved.
  • Material is shredded into unrecognizable pieces and mixed with hundreds of tonnes of other material.
  • We are members of high profile trade organisations such as BSIA (British Security Association) and UKSSA (United Kingdom Security Shredding Association).
  • We are ISO9001 accredited, which incorporates the European Standard for Information Destruction EN15713.
  • All staff undergo regular EN15713 awareness training.
  • You can view our certificates and accreditations here.

What happens to shredded paper? Do you take it away?

Once your material has been collected and shredded, all material is sent to UK recycling centres. All recycled paper then contributes to the production of various paper products such as paper towels, paper plates, tissues and toilet roll.

Can I keep the shredded paper for my pet hamster. gerbil etc,?

Unfortunately not. your shredding is mixed with other companies shredded paper and taken away for recycling.

Do I have to remove staples, paperclips, ring binders and plastic wallets?

No, our state-of-the-art machines handle all these items with ease.

Does Shred Station offer one-off collections or do I have to be a regular customer?

We understand that waste disposal is not required all of the time, which is why we are happy to dispose of documents regularly or as and when is required with our one-off collections.

What is the difference between a recycling company and a secure document shredding service?

A recycling company primarily recycles but is not designed to comply with privacy legislation surrounding document shredding.

Our shredding services go beyond a recycling service and ensure confidential documents have been completely destroyed before they are recycled.

Why shouldn’t we just use our own in-house shredding facilities?

Outsourcing your document shredding to us proves cost-effective and can increase employee output by up to 17%.

Employees can waste valuable time separating documents, removing papers clips and staples, and putting through an office shredder.

Using our service you do not need to prepare any of the documents, you leave in staples, plastic wallets and lever arch folders etc. Just bag it or bin it and we are able to dispose of these documents in minutes as opposed to hours.

Can we place data tapes, hard drives, CD’s in the bins or bags?

You can but they need to be kept in separate bins or bags from paper, as these are charged differently.

Are the bins lockable? Can we have a key?

Our bins are lockable and have a slot in the top or front to place material through.

We request authorisation in writing to supply keys and typically restrict this to certain staff as bins are likely to contain internally confidential information.

Can I get a different colour bin?

Yes, but the price may change. Speak to our shredding specialists about your requirements and they will be able to help you.

Does the mobile shredding create a lot of noise?

The noise is comparable to a dustbin lorry. Our vehicles can process 2-3 tonnes an hour so are very quick.

Do you offer your services outside of usual business hours?

Yes, we can, but additional charges will apply.

Do you offer timed collection slots?

We are not able to specify exact time slots but we can call you 1 hour before or specify am or pm. You are welcome to call us the day before your booking to determine am or pm.

Must we specifically use the bins or bags provided?

Not if you don’t wish.

We will collect bags, boxes or pallets of material as long as;

  • They are sealed or lidded, so the paper cannot blow away.
  • Will keep the material contained, for example, not wet or flimsy so likely to fall apart.
  • The container must also not be too heavy for our operatives to manage.

Do I have to bring the bins downstairs to a central collection point?

If you have a lift then our operatives will collect the bins, bags or boxes from around the floors.

If you have boxes or bags in a cellar, for example, with no lift we can facilitate a collection but would price this separately.

Our site is secure so we cannot have your operatives walking around the floors, how can you collect our bins?

This is no problem, we recommend wheeled bins so on the day of collection your staff can wheel these to a central loading area.

All of our staff are security screened to BS7858 and we can supply relevant certifications if needed to allow our staff movement around your facility.

Can you shred wet paper?

Yes, as long as it’s within wheeled bins or bags and not contaminated from a sewer leak, for example.

Although we would not dispose of a wheeled bin full of water and just 2 sheets of paper!

If the paper is completely sodden we may prefer to take this off-site to shred rather than shred on a mobile shredding vehicle. If you call our shredding specialists they will be able to confirm for you.