Summary: Mr D complained about how the Council handled its suspension of its garden waste collection service. He also said it failed to provide updates and refused his suggestions to dispose of his garden waste. We found the Council failed to deliver the agreed service to Mr D due to circumstances outside its control. It has apologised to Mr D, provided his one-off collection, and took appropriate steps to be able to reinstate its service. It has therefore remedied the impact of its service failure as set out in its policy.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall refer to as Mr D, complained about the Council’s waste collection service, which is delivered by a contractor (the Contractor). He said it:
• wrongly said it suspended its garden waste collection service indefinitely in June 2021 due to a shortage of heavy good vehicle drivers;
• failed to give any updates or communication since June 2021 about its garden waste collection situation; and
• wrongly did not agree to his suggestions for help to dispose of his garden waste.
2. Mr D also raised concerns about the Council’s decision to award its waste collection contract to the Contractor in 2019 and its delivery of services before the suspension.
3. As a result, Mr D said he experienced distress due to the loss of service and build-up of his garden waste. He also said he had experienced uncertainty about when his garden waste would be collected, and the service would resume.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. 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)
5. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
6. We investigate complaints about councils and certain other bodies. Where an individual, organisation or private company is providing services on behalf of a council, we can investigate complaints about the actions of these providers. (Local Government Act 1974, section 25(7), as amended)
7. 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

8. As part of my investigation, I have considered Mr D’s complaint and the Council’s responses. We also discussed the complaint with Mr D and considered the relevant law and Council Policy for garden waste collections.
9. Mr D and the organisation 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

Relevant law and Policy

Garden waste

10. Councils have a duty under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to collect household waste and recycling from properties in its area. They may charge service users for some waste collections. This includes garden waste.

The Council’s Garden Waste collection service

11. In 2019 the Council arranged for a contractor to operate its waste collection services. This included all residential waste collection, including garden waste.
12. It is the Council’s policy to charge for its fortnightly garden waste collections. Customers sign up through the Council’s website and pay an annual subscription. The terms and conditions say:
• subscribers will receive a brown wheeled bin from the Council;
• the agreement starts when its bin is delivered; and
• no refunds are offered if cancelling the service during the year.
13. The Council is currently not accepting new subscriptions as its service is suspended.

What happened

14. Mr D lives in the Council’s area and signed up to its garden waste collection service. He paid the annual subscription, and he received a garden waste bin from the Council.
15. In 2021 the Council’s waste collection contractor (the Contractor) told the Council it had a shortage of heavy good vehicle drivers (HGV), which meant it could not deliver the services as agreed with the Council.
16. The Council and its Contractor met to discuss their agreement and what services could be delivered with the shortage of HGV drivers. The Council decided its Contractor should prioritise its household and recycling waste collections, but it had to suspend its garden waste collection service.
17. In June 2021 the Council told service users, including Mr D, it had suspended its garden waste service collections indefinitely.

Mr D’s complaint

18. Mr D said his garden waste build-up after the Council’s suspension as he was unable to dispose of his garden waste. So, he complained to the Council. He said it:
• wrongly said it suspended its garden waste collection service indefinitely due to a shortage of heavy good vehicle drivers;
• failed to give any updates or communication since June 2021 about its garden waste collection situation;
• wrongly did not agree to his suggestions for help to dispose of his garden waste; and
• he questioned how the Council had awarded its waste collection contract to the Council in 2019 and referred to issues with the waste collections prior to its suspension.
19. Mr D asked the Council to provide him with a one-off collection for all his garden waste or cover the costs of skip hire so he could arrange for the waste to be removed by himself. He also suggested for the Council to prioritise is waste collections differently to include some garden waste collections.
20. In response, the Council told Mr D it did not know when it would be able to reinstate its garden waste collection service. It apologised for the inconvenience this caused. It also explained:
• it will inform Mr D and other service users when it can reinstate its service. However, it had arranged for one-off collections to take place in late 2021, and it would continue to arrange one-off collections until its service was reinstated;
• it suggested service users could compost garden waste or bring it to the Council’s recycling centre. However, it did not agree to Mr D’s suggestions for it to help him with the disposal of his waste;
• the terms and conditions of the agreement allowed it to suspend its service and it would not refund service users. However, payments for the waste collection service would be rolled over to ensure everyone receives the same amount of collections they had paid for;
• its officers were meeting regularly with the Contractor’s management to assess performance and review the measures being taken to mitigate the problems. This included providing incentives to recruit more HGV drivers;
• it was applying daily penalties against its Contractor for its failures to adhere to their contract; and
• the HGV driver shortage had been widely reported both locally and nationally over the past months, which affects all services and industries. It was aware other councils were also struggling with the waste collection services.
21. Mr D said in late 2021 he had still not had his one-off garden waste collection, and he remained unhappy about how the Council had managed its service and its Contractor. He asked the Ombudsman to consider his complaint.
22. Mr D had his one-off garden waste collection shortly after complaining to the Ombudsman, and the Council has a further one-off collection scheduled to take place by March 2022.

Analysis

23. When a council commissions another organisation to provide services on its behalf it remains responsible for those services and for the actions of the organisation providing them.
24. The Council suspended its garden waste collection service, and agrees it has therefore failed to deliver its service as agreed with Mr D. This was therefore a service failure which the Council was responsible for.
25. The Council told Mr D it had suspended its garden waste collections due to an HGV driver shortage, and it had therefore prioritised household waste and recycling services. It also explained it was continuing to work with its Contractor to recruit more HGV drivers and scheduled one-off collections to mitigate the impact on Mr D and other garden waste service users.
26. I acknowledge Mr D’s frustrations. However, I have not found fault in how the Council handled the suspension of its garden waste service. This is because:
• the Council notified Mr D and other registered service users about its service suspension and explained this was due to an HGV driver shortage. It apologised for the inconvenience this would cause;
• I accept the shortage of HGV drivers is a national issue which is widely known and causes difficulties for several industries and other councils. The cause for the Council’s suspension was therefore not within the Council’s control;
• it put in place one-off collections to take place in late 2021 to mitigate the impact on service users, which Mr D has since received. It also intends to continue its one-off collections until its service is reinstated; and
• it has continued to work with its Contractor to recruit more HGV drivers to deliver its services, which includes recruitment and retention incentives. It has therefore taken the steps available to it to be able to reinstate its service when enough drivers are available.
27. Also, the Council has said it will roll-over payments for its garden waste collection service, which means Mr D and other service users will receive the number of collections they paid for. I found no fault by the Council for not offering a refund. This is because it acted as set out in its terms and conditions.
28. While I understand Mr D would like the Council to take further action against its Contractor, or find another provider, such matters are not for the Ombudsman to consider. This is because issues about contracts are between the parties involved, and a court can determine what an appropriate outcome of a contractual dispute should be.

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Final decision

29. The Council caused a service failure, but it has already mitigated and remedied the impact in line with its policy.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman