Action Carting Frequently Asked Questions

Call our Customer Service department at 1-866-DIAL-IWS (1-866-342-5497) or send us a message using our Contact Form. Our agents are very knowledgeable and are eager to help!

Monday – Friday 8:00am – 6:00pm EST
Saturday 8:00am – 12:30pm EST

Online: BillTrust Payment Portal
Mail: PO Box 554744 Detroit, MI 48228-4744
Phone: 1-866-DIAL-IWS (1-866-342-5497)
Please have your account number and invoice number.

All customers, IWS and Action, residential and commercial are eligible for online billing. Visit the BillTrust Payment Portal and click the “Sign Up Now” button. You will need both your account number and enrollment token number to complete your sign-up, which can both be found on your invoice. Continue to follow the prompts online to set-up your account.

We accept:
✓ All major credits cards (please note a 3% convenience fee applies)
✓ Debit cards
✓ Checks (via mail to: PO Box 554744 Detroit, MI 48228-4744)
✓ Checking account/ACH
Please note: Convenience fees will not be applied to personal debit cards – our payment systems can distinguish
debit from credit and will not process the fee.

Please be sure to have your materials out for pick up THE NIGHT BEFORE your service day.
For Action NYC customers, your pick-up runs overnight. The morning of your pick-up is considered to be your pick-
up day. For example, if your containers/agreement reads “Tuesday” pick-up, you should put your waste & recycling
out Monday evening. Your route will begin on Monday evening (7pm) and will run until Tuesday morning (7am). We
consider this a Tuesday pick-up

Action routes in New York City run overnight between the hours of 7:00pm – 7:00am.

Service will resume when conditions are safe. However, our drivers must have safe, clear, and unobstructed access to your containers to complete service.

If snow, ice, flood waters or debris prevent safe access, service may be delayed or skipped until conditions improve.

To help ensure your service is completed as scheduled, clear snow, ice and storm debris from any access ways including driveways, alleyways, loading docks, entrances and gates. Walkways used by the driver should be clear and containers must be freewheeling, not frozen in place, and easily movable for service.

If you are a residential customer receiving driveway or backdoor service and are unable to fully clear your driveway, please place your totes at the curb prior to service to help avoid potential service interruptions.

If you have a compactor, please ensure that snow and ice are cleared from the entire unit. Keeping snow and ice at least 3 feet away from the power unit can help prevent sluggish or unresponsive controls caused by frozen hydraulic lines.

If access areas are not properly cleared, the driver may be unable to safely service your location.

We accept plastic bottles & jugs, aluminum & steel cans, newspaper, cardboard, and paper.
We can NOT accept, plastic bags, hazardous or electronic waste, medical sharps, glass, or polystyrene foam.

Action’s standard collection routes do not operate on the following holidays.

NOTE: If your collection falls on any of the holidays listed above, please contact our customer service team to
reschedule your pick-up. 1-973-623-7600, or e-mail customerservice@actioncarting.com

According to NYC regulations (AC16-116 b), businesses can either contract with a private carter for waste and recycling collection or obtain a “Self-Hauler” registration from the Business Integrity Commission and transport the refuse in a vehicle with commercial license plates. To avoid a violation or fine, post your carter’s decal and schedule in your window, and keep a copy of your contract or receipt at your business. Merchants that transport their refuse personally must post their Business Integrity Commission Self-Hauler registration.

Yes, per Rules of the City of New York 1-10, all businesses in NYC must recycle metal, glass, plastic, beverage
cartons, paper, and cardboard. Some businesses are also required to recycle organics and construction waste.

Yes!  In New York City, all businesses are required by law (NYC 16 RCNY § 1-10) to recycle paper, cardboard, plastics, glass and metals, and must adhere to separation, containerization, and signage requirements.

Recycling plans under NYC regulation MUST COMPLY with one of the following recycling collection methods:

• source-separated – recycling is separated into two streams:

1. Metal, glass and plastic
2. Paper & cardboard

• co-collection – recycling is source-separated (see above) and allows your hauler to collect your recycling in one truck
• single stream – your recyclable materials including metal, glass, plastic, paper and cardboard are collected, stored and set out in one bag or bin.

All recyclable materials MUST be kept separate from trash at all times.

Yes!  Under DSNY’s implementation of Local Law 199, also known as Commercial Waste Zones (CWZ), businesses operating in active zones must contract with a DSNY-permitted carter to collect BOTH their waste and recycling.

Standard recycling materials include:

• Office paper, newspaper, magazines, catalogs, phone books, mixed paper and corrugated cardboard and boxes
• Metal materials including cans, aluminum and steel
• Glass containers including jars and bottles
• Plastics containers and bottles, including those #1-7, bottles, jars, jugs, and rigid plastic

PRO TIP: Never throw organic waste like food waste in with your paper, cardboard, plastics, metals and glass.  Food waste contaminates this recycling stream!

Plastics #1-7 are recyclable, this includes most rigid plastics (i.e. items that are relatively inflexible and maintain their shape or form when bent). If you can crunch it in your hands or it won’t crunch at all, like bottles or plastic clam shell containers, that is likely considered rigid plastic.

Plastics like plastic wrap, film, shopping bags, plastic coated paper like sticker paper, are not recyclable and should be thrown in with your regular garbage. If you can stretch it, it should be thrown in your regular garbage.

PRO TIP:  You may check your local shopping centers, they may have take-back programs for plastic bags.

Yes, to an extent. Recyclable containers should be free of food, liquids and oils. You can simply rinse or wipe out any food residue with a napkin, paper towel, dish cloth, etc.  

PRO TIP: Remember to empty your water bottles before throwing them into your recycling bin!

Yes, co-mingling recyclables and waste in the same container is PROHIBITED. All recyclable material must be kept separate from all garbage at all times. All garbage and recycling containers must be labeled with the designated material type.

You should have separate bins for garbage and recyclables including paper, plastics, metals, and glass. All cardboard must be broken down, flat stacked and bound.

Maintain signage in both public collection and storage areas describing how recyclables and waste is collected and separated.

PRO TIP: Avoid “wishcycling,” that is throwing non-recyclable materials in with your recycling such as food waste, plastic films, and heavily soiled materials.  This can negatively impact recycling rates!

Your method of recycling collection will dictate how many bins you need to maintain at your business.

If you have a single-stream or comingle recycling services (you do not separate paper/carboard from other recyclables)

• You need one bin for trash, and one bin for all recycling

If you source separate your recycling (you separate carboard/paper from plastics, metals, and glass)

• You will need one bin for trash, one bin for cardboard/paper, and one bin for plastics, metals and glass

PRO TIP: Remember to always label your bins with WORDS, not just symbols as required by DSNY.

Organics recycling is the process of diverting natural materials like food scraps, yard waste, and soiled paper from landfills.

Acceptable organic waste includes: compostable products, biodegradable food containers, utensils, cups, plant waste (trimmings and leaves), food waste (all food items like banana peels, fruit pits, apple cores), food-soiled paper (paper food trays, coffee filters, and tea bags).

PRO TIP: Coffee pods with a plastic shell, like K-cups, are NOT recyclable and must be thrown away with your regular trash.

It is ILLEGAL to dispose of electronic devices with your regular garbage or recycling. Visit DSNY (Electronics & E-Waste - DSNY) for types of E-Waste that requires specialty recycling.

We have electronics recycling programs to help you dispose of your old electronic devices. Contact us to learn more about our universal recycling program.

Yes, we can provide recycling services for garments and textiles.  If your business disposes of more than 10% of textiles on any given night, you must be enrolled in a program to recycle.

Failure to comply with recycling rules may result in fines from the DSNY, ranging from $50 to $400 per violation of these rules. (§3-120 Recycling – Sanitation Collection Rules Penalty Schedule)

For curbside service in NYC, 16 RCNY § 1-02.1 requires that all garbage and organics must be placed out in bins with lids that close completely. All regular garbage should be placed in a black bag and put in your tote, container, or bin. All paper, plastics, metals, and glass recycling should be in a clear bag, and placed in a labeled tote, container, or bin. All bags must be securely tied.

Cardboard must be flattened, bundled, and tied. Leave out all waste and recycling for collection within your designated pickup time. For Action customers, your collection occurs overnight between the hours of 7pm - 7am.

PRO TIP: NEVER place recycling in black plastic bags, it will not be collected and will left at the curb.  Black bags may only be used for garbage.  Any hauler collecting recyclable materials as trash will face a $10,000 fine.

Your business may be required to comply with NYC’s Commercial Organics Law (Local Law 146).  The law requires some businesses to separate their organic waste (food scraps, food-soiled paper, and plant waste) from the rest of their waste. Establishments that may be required to comply include:

• Food Service Establishments
• Retail Food Stores
• Food Preparation Locations
• Catering Establishments
• Temporary Public Events
• Arenas & Stadiums
• Food Manufacturers
• Food Wholesalers

Action offers organics recycling to all businesses looking to improve their diversion rates.

For more information and organics recycling requirements for businesses, visit DSNY’s website: Commercial Organics Requirements - DSNY

Batteries, electric lamps and mercury-containing devices CANNOT be disposed of with your regular garbage or recycling. While you can put "household" alkaline batteries in the trash, it is DANGEROUS and ILLEGAL to dispose of all rechargeable, Lithium-Ion, and most single-use batteries with trash or recycling.

Batteries can catch fire and even explode. Improper disposal can lead to serious property damage, injury, and even death.

In New York State, all stores that sell rechargeable batteries or products containing them MUST accept rechargeable batteries for recycling.

We can also help dispose of these items, contact us to learn more about our specialty recycling program.

• Ceramics are not glass and cannot be recycled.
• Disposable paper coffee cups are not recyclable because of the plastic film on the inside of the cup. Also important, remember never to microwave these cups because of that inner plastic lining. Heating can release harmful chemicals like BPA and phthalates, melt the plastic, or cause it to warp. 
• Chip bags, granola and candy wrappers are generally not recyclable because the plastic is too thin. However manufacturers may have take-back programs to recycle these materials. 
• Biodegradable plastic is only recyclable under a composting system and should only go in your Organics Recycling.
• Plastic bags can NOT be recycled with your regular recycling. Recycling plastic bags require specialty take-back programs.
• Plastic packaging like bubble wrap, cling wrap, and other film plastics are not recyclable for the same reasons that plastic bags are not recyclable. Where possible, reuse them for shipping, but where not possible, dispose of them in the garbage. 
• Paper towels and napkins can ONLY be placed in Organics recycling; paper towels and napkins should NOT be placed in with your paper recycling.
• Coffee pods like K-cups cannot be recycled and should NOT be placed with either your plastic or organics recycling
• Fire Extinguishers: Do not place them in the trash or recycling. Contact a FDNY-certified fire extinguisher retailer or bring to a SAFE Disposal Event.

Most fire extinguishers are refillable by FDNY-certified fire extinguisher retailers.

Learn more about smoke and carbon monoxide detector disposal.