Summary: Mr X complained the Council failed to collect and return his bins in line with the assisted collection agreement. The Council’s repeated failure to collect and return Mr X’s bins over a 12-month period was fault. The Council agreed to pay Mr X £150 to acknowledge the frustration and time and trouble this caused. It will also monitor his next 12 refuse bin collections.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council failed to collect and return his refuse bins in line with his assisted collection agreement over the last 12 months. Mr X said the Council repeatedly apologised for this but did not provided a solution. Mr X states this caused him frustration, time and trouble and pain and anxiety when he had to retrieve his own bins.

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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’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I spoke to Mr X about his complaint.
5. I considered the Council’s response to my enquiries.
6. Mr X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

The Council’s assisted bin collection service

7. The Council’s website states that assisted bin collections are available to people whose circumstances make it difficult for them to leave their waste outside for collection due to a medical condition or disability. It states that older people who find it difficult or impossible to move their bin may also be eligible. To receive an assisted collection a person must apply and may need to provide proof of their condition or disability.

What happened

8. Mr X has an assisted bin collection agreement in place with the Council due to a medical condition and disability. The agreement says the Council should collect the refuse bin from Mr X’s property, empty it and then return it to his property.
9. Between April 2020 and May 2021 Mr X complained to the Council 13 times that it had either not collected his refuse bin or had not returned it to his property. When the Council did not return the bin Mr X had to retrieve it himself, which due to his disability caused him pain.
10. The Council upheld Mr X’s complaints. It repeatedly apologised to Mr X and stated it had reminded the crew about his assisted collection. There is no evidence the Council carried out any further investigation or actions to prevent a recurrence of the issue.
11. In March 2021, dissatisfied with the Council’s response, Mr X complained to us.

The Council’s response to my enquiry letter

12. The Council recognised it had failed to provide the assisted collection service to Mr X and had apologised on seven occasions. It stated it has invested in a new automatic waste technology system to update and improve the service. The Council began using the new system in October 2020 and a software update in March 2021 included a click button for crews to confirm when they have made an assisted collection. Since the beginning of March 2021 Mr X has contacted the Council a further five times about missed collections.

My findings

13. The Council has accepted that it regularly failed to collect and return Mr X’s bins in line with the assisted collection agreement in place over a 12-month period. That is fault. It caused Mr X distress, anxiety and pain when he had to collect the bins himself and time and trouble repeatedly complaining to the Council about it.
14. The Council has apologised to Mr X for failing to collect and return his bins in line with the assisted collection agreement on seven separate occasions. Despite this there is no evidence that it investigated or monitored Mr X’s collections to resolve or prevent recurrence of it. That was fault and meant Mr X continued to experience repeated injustice.

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Agreed action

15. Within one month of the date of the final decision the Council agreed to pay Mr X a symbolic payment of £150 to recognise the distress, frustration and time and trouble caused to him by the Council’s repeated failure to collect and return his bins in line with the assisted bin collection agreement over a 12-month period.
16. The Council has agreed to monitor Mr X’s next 12 refuse bin collections to ensure it collects and returns his bins in line with the assisted bin collection agreement in place. It will provide us with evidence it has done so on a monthly basis.

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Final decision

17. I have found fault leading to injustice and the Council agreed to my recommendations to remedy that injustice and prevent further faults occurring. I have completed my investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman