£50 Fine for having bin stolen

[slowmotion]

I hope you will vote for someone who will give your council discretion to levy enough tax to pay for what you want.

Since the initial disappearance of my black bin bags (in about 1995), the national and local elections have gone in favour of a complete mix of parties. The bags remain tragically absent. I simply don't know who to vote for.

 

[TwickenhamCyclist]

The tip was a nightmare when I had my pickup. They refused to let me unload my old bath because it was supposedly "a commercial vehicle", even though it was neither registered or being used as such. Meanwhile , he was busy arguing with me and dozens of others were dumping their illicit rubbish behind his back.

I drove out, parked on the road, and me and eldest daughter then carried the bath in by hand. He coughed and spluttered, but had no imagined lawful excuse to refuse.

And they wonder why so much crap gets fly tipped.

They would here - you are not allowed in 'on foot'... but yes, councils seem to be caught between a rock and a hard place... rubbish disposal is expensive and they understandably want to limit it but by making it harder or really expensive some people will just resort to fly tipping - which I can imagine costs a lot to deal with...

 

[screenman]

They would here - you are not allowed in 'on foot'... but yes, councils seem to be caught between a rock and a hard place... rubbish disposal is expensive and they understandably want to limit it but by making it harder or really expensive some people will just resort to fly tipping - which I can imagine costs a lot to deal with...

Just reminded me I had a rubbish clearence business around the Twickenham area that I sold in 1988.

 

[screenman]

Freecycle? Someone else might want them or plants...

They are old and cracked, I am happy to pay to get rid of. It was it seems a costly favour.

 

[Drago]

They would here - you are not allowed in 'on foot'... but yes, councils seem to be caught between a rock and a hard place... rubbish disposal is expensive and they understandably want to limit it but by making it harder or really expensive some people will just resort to fly tipping - which I can imagine costs a lot to deal with...

They had a pedestrian gate, which seems a strange expense when not permitted in on foot

 

[NorthernDave]

In a cruel irony, we got home tonight and went to fetch our bin from the end of the ginnel (it's bin day) and found it split open along the front, virtually from top to bottom. It can only have been done by the bin waggon and it's mechanical grabbers, but having looked on the council website it's going to cost us to replace it.

Mrs ND called the council today on the number given on the refuse departments webpage and was confronted with an automated system.
After the beep state your name, after the beep state your address, after the beep state why you're calling, etc, etc.
At no point did she get to speak to a human, so was unable to query the apparently rigid policy.
Equally at no point was she able to pay for a replacement bin either...
At the end of the call there was another recorded statement saying that the council would work to resolve the issue within 6 weeks (!) and that, if deemed necessary, someone would attempt to call her within the next few days.
How very Kafkaesque.

So I've emailed the generic refuse dept mail address on the website (cc'ing our local councillor in) stating what has happened and asking how we can get this resolved.

Oh, and on the subject of councils being profligate with our cash whilst claiming to be skint due to nasty government cuts?
My local council has (for example) closed several old folks homes, closed several libraries, claims it can't afford to repair the roads (but ironically is still putting more speed bumps in), introduced charges for new bins and bulky waste collection, all due to a "lack of government funding", but has still found £6.25 million to buy a warehouse which it leases back to Amazon, £500,000 to refurbish a council meeting room in the Civic Hall, £45 million to buy a city centre office block, £500k to Sustrans to build a bridge, and lets not forget perhaps most damning of all, at least £72 million was poured into cancelled mass transit schemes, including the much ridiculed trolleybus programme. There are many, many, many more examples but that gives a flavour of how they carry on spending other peoples money while claiming not to have money for core services.

 

[srw]

Mrs ND called the council today on the number given on the refuse departments webpage and was confronted with an automated system.
After the beep state your name, after the beep state your address, after the beep state why you're calling, etc, etc.
At no point did she get to speak to a human, so was unable to query the apparently rigid policy.
Equally at no point was she able to pay for a replacement bin either...
At the end of the call there was another recorded statement saying that the council would work to resolve the issue within 6 weeks (!) and that, if deemed necessary, someone would attempt to call her within the next few days.
How very Kafkaesque.

So I've emailed the generic refuse dept mail address on the website (cc'ing our local councillor in) stating what has happened and asking how we can get this resolved.

Oh, and on the subject of councils being profligate with our cash whilst claiming to be skint due to nasty government cuts?
My local council has (for example) closed several old folks homes, closed several libraries, claims it can't afford to repair the roads (but ironically is still putting more speed bumps in), introduced charges for new bins and bulky waste collection, all due to a "lack of government funding", but has still found £6.25 million to buy a warehouse which it leases back to Amazon, £500,000 to refurbish a council meeting room in the Civic Hall, £45 million to buy a city centre office block, £500k to Sustrans to build a bridge, and lets not forget perhaps most damning of all, at least £72 million was poured into cancelled mass transit schemes, including the much ridiculed trolleybus programme. There are many, many, many more examples but that gives a flavour of how they carry on spending other peoples money while claiming not to have money for core services.

Those property deals are probably sensible ways of raising money. Not only does the council get the income from the tenant, it also attracts more businesses and individuals to spend money in the local area.

Welcome to the new Tory world.

 

[steveindenmark]

Hounslow council are now fining you if you are a victim of crime... my mate had his bin 'stolen' last week (put it outside his garden for collection and and when he got home it had gone). Council now want £50 to replace it apparently and won't collect his rubbish unless it is in one of their bins...

Did he report it and get a crime report number?

Would that have any sway with the council?

I suppose you could chain it up until bin day. But then you would have to stay with it until it was emptied. What would be the councils solution to the problem?

 

[steveindenmark]

Is there a way of marking these bins? One of mine disapeared a few years back but I managed to find it.

I mean I've got a number on mine but is this sufficient?

Are you allowed to customise them? I have seen bin wallpaper on e bay before.

I see you can also get locks for them so that should keep them safe most of the time.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Decorative-...hash=item418ae68d55:m:mLWSc0KAreSGw_JRsRYcnKw

 

[Drago]

Are you allowed to customise them? I have seen bin wallpaper on e bay before.

I see you can also get locks for them so that should keep them safe most of the time.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Decorative-...ash=item4u18ae68d55:m:mLWSc0KAreSGw_JRsRYcnKw

In an adjacent street a gent has a wheelie bin with a speed camera warning decal upon it. Ironic, as he drives a 911 and flies about like someone has rubbed deep heat on his love plums.

 

[jonny jeez]

Not shooting the messenger - that seems like a complete waste of time ... but thank you...

Why?

Am I missing something, its the solution your mate wants. Report it, get a reference, get a free replacement.

Plus if enough folk report it the plod may (excuse me while I take a moment to stop laughing) do something (nope still bot stopped...oh my sides) about it.

 

[TwickenhamCyclist]

Why?

Am I missing something, its the solution your mate wants. Report it, get a reference, get a free replacement.

Plus if enough folk report it the plod may (excuse me while I take a moment to stop laughing) do something (nope still bot stopped...oh my sides) about it.

A waste of time for the police and for the 'victim' - just needless bureaucracy and a box ticking exercise...
"My Bin has been stolen"
"£50 please OR Go to the police station/online spend time filling in forms then the police can spend time dealing with it - give you a magic number and then it will be 'free'"

 

[NorthernDave]

A waste of time for the police and for the 'victim' - just needless bureaucracy and a box ticking exercise...
"My Bin has been stolen"
"£50 please OR Go to the police station/online spend time filling in forms then the police can spend time dealing with it - give you a magic number and then it will be 'free'"

Agreed it's needless bureaucracy but for the sake of £50, I'd be prepared to spend ten minutes on a call to 101 to get a crime number.

 

[NorthernDave]

Many council issued bins are already fitted with a chip - there were (apparently now shelved) plans to charge us all based on the amount of rubbish we were throwing out...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8550929.stm

So, in theory they already know which bin belongs to everyone.

 

[stephec]

If you're going to fit a tracker you may as well do a proper job.

Link it to a bomb in the bin that's set to go off when it's a certain distance from home.