M Wrench
2004-08-30 13:28:40 UTC
If you get requests for collecting plastic milk bottle tops for a
wheelchair - it's the successor to the Walkers Crisp Packets for life-saving
surgery hoax :( It will probably start with renewed vigour due to the new
school year. I've checked for info on the web and found lots of people
collecting, but no-one actually accepting the plastic tops. I came across 2
sites that state it is definitely a hoax playing on people's good
intentions.
"In 2003 and 2004, "bottle tops for wheelchairs" hit the UK, though this
time it was plastic screw-on bottle tops, not metal pop-tops. Back in the
1950s and 1960s, milk was sold in glass bottles with foil bottle tops. The
washed foil tops were collected by schools, sold by weight and the money
donated to get a guide dog or a wheelchair. It is, therefore, no wonder
"milk bottle tops" are associated with collections for good causes. Apart
from doorstep deliveries, milk is now sold in plastic bottles; the bottles
themselves can be recycled, though many recycling companies ask that the
lids be removed. There are variants of the plastic bottle top hoax from all
over the UK and schools, churches, social clubs, companies and universities
have collected thousands of these worthless items. Various stores, such as
local Asda stores, also seem to have been caught out by the hoax. Bottle
tops appeals regularly surface on Ebay (auction website): Ebay-users - these
are hoaxes!
There is supposedly a French scheme for recycling bottle tops. However, the
French scheme ONLY accepts bottle tops from certain French products,
according to "Waste Watch" the scheme will not accept bottle tops sent from
England or elsewhere. I have not been able to verify the "French plastic
firm that recycles bottle tops" claim and this may also be a hoax. [...]
Apparantly only Evian bottle tops were suitable. The French plastics company
was not named and the Waste Watch reference may be a variant of this hoax.
The company alleged to redeem the plastic bottle tops is various "a dairy",
"a plastics company" or a charity such as The Children's Society. The
recipients of the wheelchair are variously claimed to be a "young boy",
"young girl" or "disabled lady". The versions of the appeal include "green
plastic milk bottle tops only", "plastic screw -on tops from pop bottles",
"shampoo bottle tops", "bottle tops and jar lids" through to "all plastic
bottle tops, any colour". Some tie this in with the need to remove the
plastic lids when sending bottles for recycling."
A British Member of Parliament (Kerry Pollard) has also been caught up in
the hoax when he
congratulated a child's efforts as have a couple of fire brigades and a
Lions club. One of the websites gives some useful info:
"How can you avoid being hoaxed by the plastic bottle top scheme? Find out
which company or charity is supposedly giving the wheelchair - contact that
company or charity. If you can't track down the company or charity because
the bottle tops are being passed from one individual to another then it is a
hoax. The person at the end of the chain will end up with a garage full of
boxes and bags of worthless bottle tops and no-one to give them to. These
hoaxes stay in circulation because people don't bother to check details. "
There's quite a lot more at
http://www.shartwell.freeserve.co.uk/humor-site/walkers-hoax.htm about
collections of plastic bottle tops, crisp packets, ring pulls etc. There is
also information about the plastic bottle tops hoax on the Waste Watch
website (they are not aware of any genuine collections) and on the Snopes
Urban Myths website (general information on collection hoaxes).
If you are asked to collect these things, make sure you definitely have a
company that is accepting them - not just so-and-so's mum or dad as they
probably haven't checked it out either - otherwise someone ends up with a
room full of sacks of them that have to be taken down the tip and you end up
fibbing to the kids about the collection going to a good cause and buying
someone a wheelchair and that perpetuates the hoax even more :(
Mike
wheelchair - it's the successor to the Walkers Crisp Packets for life-saving
surgery hoax :( It will probably start with renewed vigour due to the new
school year. I've checked for info on the web and found lots of people
collecting, but no-one actually accepting the plastic tops. I came across 2
sites that state it is definitely a hoax playing on people's good
intentions.
"In 2003 and 2004, "bottle tops for wheelchairs" hit the UK, though this
time it was plastic screw-on bottle tops, not metal pop-tops. Back in the
1950s and 1960s, milk was sold in glass bottles with foil bottle tops. The
washed foil tops were collected by schools, sold by weight and the money
donated to get a guide dog or a wheelchair. It is, therefore, no wonder
"milk bottle tops" are associated with collections for good causes. Apart
from doorstep deliveries, milk is now sold in plastic bottles; the bottles
themselves can be recycled, though many recycling companies ask that the
lids be removed. There are variants of the plastic bottle top hoax from all
over the UK and schools, churches, social clubs, companies and universities
have collected thousands of these worthless items. Various stores, such as
local Asda stores, also seem to have been caught out by the hoax. Bottle
tops appeals regularly surface on Ebay (auction website): Ebay-users - these
are hoaxes!
There is supposedly a French scheme for recycling bottle tops. However, the
French scheme ONLY accepts bottle tops from certain French products,
according to "Waste Watch" the scheme will not accept bottle tops sent from
England or elsewhere. I have not been able to verify the "French plastic
firm that recycles bottle tops" claim and this may also be a hoax. [...]
Apparantly only Evian bottle tops were suitable. The French plastics company
was not named and the Waste Watch reference may be a variant of this hoax.
The company alleged to redeem the plastic bottle tops is various "a dairy",
"a plastics company" or a charity such as The Children's Society. The
recipients of the wheelchair are variously claimed to be a "young boy",
"young girl" or "disabled lady". The versions of the appeal include "green
plastic milk bottle tops only", "plastic screw -on tops from pop bottles",
"shampoo bottle tops", "bottle tops and jar lids" through to "all plastic
bottle tops, any colour". Some tie this in with the need to remove the
plastic lids when sending bottles for recycling."
A British Member of Parliament (Kerry Pollard) has also been caught up in
the hoax when he
congratulated a child's efforts as have a couple of fire brigades and a
Lions club. One of the websites gives some useful info:
"How can you avoid being hoaxed by the plastic bottle top scheme? Find out
which company or charity is supposedly giving the wheelchair - contact that
company or charity. If you can't track down the company or charity because
the bottle tops are being passed from one individual to another then it is a
hoax. The person at the end of the chain will end up with a garage full of
boxes and bags of worthless bottle tops and no-one to give them to. These
hoaxes stay in circulation because people don't bother to check details. "
There's quite a lot more at
http://www.shartwell.freeserve.co.uk/humor-site/walkers-hoax.htm about
collections of plastic bottle tops, crisp packets, ring pulls etc. There is
also information about the plastic bottle tops hoax on the Waste Watch
website (they are not aware of any genuine collections) and on the Snopes
Urban Myths website (general information on collection hoaxes).
If you are asked to collect these things, make sure you definitely have a
company that is accepting them - not just so-and-so's mum or dad as they
probably haven't checked it out either - otherwise someone ends up with a
room full of sacks of them that have to be taken down the tip and you end up
fibbing to the kids about the collection going to a good cause and buying
someone a wheelchair and that perpetuates the hoax even more :(
Mike