Summary: Mr X complained about the Council failing to ensure that domestic waste bins are placed away from the kerb where he has to move them or risk damage to his car. The Ombudsman should not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of injustice to Mr X which would warrant an investigation.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Mr X, complains about the Council’s waste collectors leaving bins close to the kerb edge of the footway. He says that he has hit bins with his mirror when parking and that he has to sometimes move them when he parks his car. He wants the Council to make sure bins are placed against the wall.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault, or
• the injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I have considered all the information which Mr X submitted with his complaint. I have also considered the Council’s response.

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What I found

4. Mr X says he frequently has to move refuse bins from the edge of the kerb so that he can park his car without hitting them with his mirror. He says this causes him inconvenience and that in the past children have pushed bins into his car causing damage.
5. He complained to the Council and it has recently provided training to its supervisory staff in waste collection to emphasise the importance of preventing bins from blocking the pavement. This would not entirely prevent bins being moved by other parties or using them to cause damage.
6. The Council has taken what action it can to remedy the issue which Mr X has raised. The Ombudsman does not investigate complaints where the personal injustice is insufficient. In this case the occasions when Mr X has needed to move the bins is infrequent. When his car is on the highway it is the driver’s responsibility to ensure that he does not collide with any objects on the footway edge and waste bins are sufficiently visible to avoid this.

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Final decision

7. The Ombudsman should not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of injustice to Mr X which would warrant an investigation.

Investigator’s final decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman