Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about a charge for a new bin after the complainant’s bin was stolen. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and insufficient evidence of injustice.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, complains that the Council says she must pay £39 for a new recycling bin after her bin was stolen. Ms X disagrees with the charge and the policy. She wants the Council to give her a free bin and to change the policy.

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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 an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault, or
• the injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

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

3. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I read the complaint and the Council’s responses. I considered the bin charging policy. I considered comments Ms X made in reply to a draft of this decision.

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What I found

Bin charging policy

5. The Council introduced the policy in 2001. The policy says the Council will charge to replace bins that are stolen, vandalised, lost, damaged or required for a new property. A bin costs £22.50 or £39, depending on the size.

What happened

6. Ms X’s bin was stolen in June 2017. The Council says she paid £22.50 for a new bin.
7. Ms X’s bin was stolen again in January 2020. She reported the theft to the police and has a crime reference number. She asked the Council for a new bin. The Council told her she would have to pay for one. Ms X says she had a larger bin so would need to pay £39 for a replacement.
8. Ms X says she should not have to pay to replace a bin which was stolen. She says this has happened twice. She disagrees with the Council’s policy and wants it changed. She says the policy is too blunt and takes no account of individual circumstances or whether someone is a victim of crime. Ms X says the Council should offer discounts to some people.
9. Ms X wants the Council to give her a free bin. As an alternative Ms X says the Council should give her a discount on the price of a new bin. If not, then Ms X says she will be forced to stop recycling.

Assessment

10. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The policy says the Council will charge to replace stolen bins. The Council’s decision to ask Ms X to pay for another bin is consistent with the policy so there is no reason to start an investigation.
11. The Council, not the Ombudsman, sets policies. The bin charging policy has been in place since 2001. If Ms X thinks the policy is unfair she would need to lobby local councillors for a change in the policy. She could ask the Council to change the policy so it takes into account individual circumstances or offers discounts. It would be for the Council to decide whether to change the policy.
12. I also will not start an investigation because a dispute over £39 does not represent sufficient injustice to warrant an investigation. I will not take the 2017 charge into account because it had happened more than 12 months ago.

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Final decision

13. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and insufficient evidence of injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman