Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to issue the complainant with wheelie bins for his household waste and recycling. There is insufficient evidence of fault to justify an investigation.

The complaint

1. The complainant, I shall call Mr X, complains the Council refuses to acknowledge that he cannot store wheelie bins at his home. He says the Council refuses to visit his home, instead using a plan of the property which does not reflect the physical situation.
2. Mr X also complains the Council failed to respond to his complaint within its published response timeframe.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate 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 continue an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

Refuse and recycling collections

6. Councils have a duty under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to collect household waste and recycling from properties in its area. Under the Act it is for councils to decide the type of bins or boxes people must use.
7. The Council’s website shows the criteria used to assess whether a property is not suitable for wheelie bins. It states the criteria for not having wheelie bins are:
• No storage or space for the bins
• No access
• Limited storage for the bins; and
• Limited access.
8. Mr X says he does not have storage space for the bins because he parks two cars in tandem on his drive. And he cannot store them on his side access path because of plants, a hose pipe tap and drains on either side of the path.
9. The Council confirms it has surveyed Mr X’s property and is satisfied that, while it may be inconvenient, there is enough space to store the bins and present them at the collection point for emptying.
10. The Council has clear assessment criteria for assessing the suitability of properties for a wheelie bin collection service. It has surveyed Mr X’s property and decided there is adequate storage space for wheelie bins. I understand Mr X disagrees, but having considered Mr X’s objections and surveyed his home this is a decision it is entitled to make.
11. I note Mr X says the Council’s response to his complaint was late. However, I do not consider this caused Mr X sufficient personal injustice to warrant our involvement.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we have seen no evidence of fault in the way the Council decided to issue him with wheelie bins for refuse and recycling collection. And any injustice caused by a delayed response to his complaint is not sufficient to justify an investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman