Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the frequency of bin collections. There is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation and we would be unable to achieves the outcome Mr Z wants. Moreover, the issues raised affect all or most of the people in the area.

The complaint

1. Mr Z says the Council changed the frequency of bin collections from once every fortnight to once every three weeks.
2. Mr Z also says the Council’s waste collection costs a disproportionate amount versus other local authorities despite the other authorities having more frequent bin collections.
3. Mr Z says the three weekly bin collections has breached his human rights as he is now unable to enjoy his property due to the increase in flies and wasps. Mr Z wants the Council to reinstate the fortnightly collections.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
5. The Ombudsman investigates complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We do not start or may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants,

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

6. We cannot investigate something that affects all or most of the people in a council’s area. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(7), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

7. I considered information provided by Mr Z and the Council.
8. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

9. The Environmental Protection Act 1990 places a legal duty on Councils to collect household waste and recycling free of charge. However, the Council has discretion to decide the frequency of the collections.
10. I appreciate Mr Z’s comments about the Council failing to carry out the results of a survey which asked if the residents were happy with a three weekly bin collection. However, the Council has explained Cabinet approved the decision to move to three weekly collections in 2017. Therefore, we would be unable to achieve what Mr Z wants which is to make the Council collect the bins fortnightly.
11. The Council has also tried to solve Mr Z’s problem by offering to carry out a waste audit to see if he can get an extra bin. However, Mr Z has refused this offer which he says is a breach of his human rights.
12. Furthermore, the law says the Ombudsman cannot investigate a complaint which affects all or most of the residents in the Council’s area. The decision to change the frequency of the bin collections and the cost of the waste collections compared to other authorities affects most of the residents in this area. Therefore, this complaint is out of our jurisdiction.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate Mr Z’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault to justify an investigation and we would be unable to achieve the outcome Mr Z wants. Moreover, the issues complained about affect all or most of the residents in the area.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman