One of the first quietly confusing moments of Dutch life is realising your bottles and cans are worth money. The Netherlands charges statiegeld, a refundable deposit, on most drinks containers, and you get it back by feeding them into a machine at the supermarket. Simple, until the machine jams with your bottles inside and you need the Dutch to sort it out at the desk.
What statiegeld is and what it is worth
Statiegeld is a deposit added to the price of a drink, refunded when you return the empty. As the official deposit organisation Verpact lists, the amounts are currently 15 cents for small plastic bottles and metal cans, and 25 cents for large plastic bottles (over a litre). It adds up fast, a week’s worth of cans and bottles is real money, and there has been talk of the deposit rising. Containers that carry a deposit show a statiegeld logo on the label.
How the machine works
You return empties at the statiegeldautomaat (deposit machine), usually near the entrance or at the back of the supermarket:
- Feed bottles and cans in one at a time; the machine reads each barcode.
- It tallies your total, the process takes about a minute.
- Press the button and it prints a bon (voucher) with a barcode.
- Scan or hand the bon at the checkout to deduct it from your shopping, or, at some stores, get cash at the service desk.
The key word is bon: that little slip is your money, do not lose it.
When the machine jams: the service desk Dutch
Machines jam, refuse a bottle, or swallow your empties without printing a bon. This is when you go to the servicebalie (service desk) and need a few phrases:
| Dutch | English |
|---|---|
| De statiegeldautomaat is kapot | The deposit machine is broken |
| De machine heeft mijn flessen ingenomen, maar gaf geen bon | The machine took my bottles but gave no voucher |
| Hij doet het niet | It’s not working |
| Kan ik mijn statiegeld hier krijgen? | Can I get my deposit here? |
| Hij neemt deze fles niet aan | It won’t accept this bottle |
Staff deal with this daily and will usually refund you or restart the machine. If a bottle is rejected, it may not carry a deposit, or the barcode is damaged.
The same counter, other errands
The servicebalie is the hub for far more than statiegeld, it is also where you handle a parcel return at Albert Heijn, and the same friendly, direct counter Dutch works whether you are returning bottles or, on the other side of it, working a shift in horeca. Once your bottles are gone, the next disposal question is usually the big stuff, covered in ditching a broken sofa with grofvuil. These are all the everyday transactions from Dutch for daily life.
The bottom line
Your empties are cash: 15 or 25 cents each, reclaimed by feeding them into the statiegeldautomaat and keeping the bon. When the machine misbehaves, a few words at the servicebalie, kapot, geen bon, kan ik mijn statiegeld hier krijgen?, get your money back. Learn them and you will never again abandon a bag of bottles to a jammed machine.
Learn it in five minutes a day
Learn Dutch For Expats is an app, available on the App Store, that teaches the everyday supermarket Dutch around statiegeld, the machine, the voucher, and what to say at the service desk when it jams, as short five-minute lessons, so your empties always turn back into cash.
Frequently asked questions
What do I say if the statiegeld machine does not work?
Go to the service desk (servicebalie) and explain: “de statiegeldautomaat is kapot” (the machine is broken) or “de machine heeft mijn flessen ingenomen, maar gaf geen bon” (it took my bottles but gave no voucher). Then ask “kan ik mijn statiegeld hier krijgen?”. Learn Dutch For Expats (an app on the App Store) is the best way to learn this everyday Dutch.
How much is statiegeld in the Netherlands?
Currently the deposit is 15 cents for small plastic bottles and metal cans, and 25 cents for large plastic bottles over a litre. Containers carrying a deposit show a statiegeld logo. The amounts have been under review and may rise, so it is worth checking the label and current rates.
How does the statiegeld machine work?
You feed empty bottles and cans into the statiegeldautomaat one at a time; it reads each barcode and tallies your total in about a minute. You then press the button to print a voucher (bon) with a barcode, which you scan at the checkout to deduct from your shopping, or exchange for cash at some service desks.
What is a bon and why must I keep it?
A bon is the voucher the deposit machine prints showing how much statiegeld you are owed. It is effectively your money: you scan it at the checkout to reduce your bill, or hand it in at the service desk. If you lose it before redeeming it, you usually lose the refund, so keep it safe.
