Summary: Ms X complains the Council failed to collect her general, recycling and garden waste, return her bins properly and about charges for green waste collection. We find the Council at fault in relation to the missed collections and complaint handling which caused Ms X avoidable frustration, distress, and inconvenience. The Council has agreed to apologise and make a symbolic payment of £150 to Ms X, undertake a period of six weeks monitoring her collections and provide a staff reminder.

The complaint

1. Ms X complains the Council:

a) Failed to collect her assisted general, recycling and garden waste.

b) Collection crew did not return her bins to the agreed location.

c) Charges disabled residents for green waste collection.

2. Ms X says the missed collections caused waste build up, bad smell and obstructed access to her home. She says she had to put the bins back which caused her avoidable distress and hardship due to her disabilities and she also had to arrange for others to help. Ms X says charging disabled residents for green waste collection is unfair when they are physically unable to attend the free waste recycling centre.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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)
4. 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)
5. 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 further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
6. If we are satisfied with an organisation’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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What I have and have not investigated

7. I have investigated Ms X’s complaint strands at paragraph 1(a) in the period 1 July 2023 until April 2024. This is because her complaints about missed collections in earlier years is out of time for the reasons set out at paragraph 4 (above).
8. I have not investigated Ms X’s complaint strand at paragraph 1 (c). This is because the available evidence shows the Council provides green waste collection as a discretionary service. The records show the Council’s decision to charge residents for the service was taken by cabinet following an equality impact assessment which included considering those with disabilities. There is therefore not enough evidence of fault or injustice to Ms X to justify further investigation and further investigation also would not lead to a different outcome as explained at paragraph 5 (above).

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How I considered this complaint

9. During my investigation I spoke to Ms X to discuss her complaint and considered information she provided. I also made enquiries of the Council and considered its response.
10. Ms X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on a draft of this decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Refuse and recycling collections

11. Councils have a duty under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to collect household waste and recycling from properties in its area.

The Council’s waste collection policy

12. The Council collects:
• Black bins- general household waste once a week.
• Brown bins- recycling waste once every two weeks.
13. The Council provides an assisted collection service for people who are unable to move their bins and boxes due to a disability or age. The Council should collect the bins from the storage point and return them to the same point.
14. The Council provides a green bin (garden and food waste) collection service at a cost. The Council collects this waste once every two weeks on the same day as recycling.
15. The Council requires missed bin collections be reported within two working days for recollection. The return date is dependent on the circumstances of the case. Rejected bins are collected at the next collection date. When the Council has completed the collection, it informs the complainant and closes the report.

What happened

16. Ms X explained she has a disability which affects her ability to walk, and she uses crutches. Ms X has had assisted general waste and recycling collections for several years.
17. Ms X also subscribed for the Council’s green bin collection service as set out at paragraph 14 (above).
18. Ms X explained:
• The Council had missed her general, recycling, and green bin waste collections on numerous occasions in previous years which she reported. The Council then assured her of improvements, but the missed collections continued.
• The collection crew did always not put her bins back to the correct location. She then had to move the bins herself with her disability or get assistance which caused her hardship.
19. Ms X was unable to provide me with specific dates when the crew failed to return her bins properly. The Council’s records also do not show this issue being reported after the collections were completed.

Ms X’s missed waste collection reports

20. The available records, show Ms X reported missed bin collections on the following dates, in the period I am investigating:
• 1 August 2023, general household waste.
• 23 August 2023- food/garden waste.
• 29 August 2023- food/garden waste.
• 24 December 2023, recycling waste.
• 5 January 2024- recycling waste.
• 9 January 2024, recycling waste.
• 27 February 2024, general household waste.

Ms X’s complaint

21. On 23 August Ms X formally complained to the Council about missed food/garden waste collections. Ms X said the Council had missed her collections on numerous occasions, failed to put her bins back and she now wished to cancel her subscription.

The Council’s response

22. In its stage one response dated 29 August 2023, the Council said:
• It was sorry to learn Ms X was unhappy with its food and garden waste services and would forward her concerns to its waste supervisors.
• It noted Ms X’s road had access issues due parked vehicles, but it normally returned on the same day if vehicles prevented collection.
• Its records did not show any reported missed garden waste collections from her address. But she could report them as soon as possible and it would ensure recollection and correct placement of the bins.
• Apologised for the poor service Ms X had received and any inconvenience caused.
23. Ms X was not satisfied with the Council’s response and escalated her complaint. This time she further explained that her general and recycling waste had also been missed on many occasions and the crew were not putting the bins back in the correct place according to the assisted collections policy.
24. In its stage two response, the Council:
• Apologised again for any inconvenience caused to Ms X.
• Acknowledged it was sorry she would no longer participate in its green waste collection service.
• Accepted its service sometimes fell short of its expectations but it was committed to improvements.
• Did not address Ms X’s complaint about missed household and recycling waste.
25. Unhappy with the Council’s response to her complaint, Ms X approached the Ombudsman.

The Council’s response to our enquiries

26. The Council has confirmed:
• It completed an equality impact assessment as part of its decision making to charge for food/garden waste collections which considered residents with disabilities.
• Ms X’s 1 August 2023 missed collection was recollected on 3 August 2023.
• Ms X’s reports on 23 and 29 August 2023 related to the same missed food/garden waste collection. However, it did not say if and when this collection was completed.
• Ms X’s reports on 24 December 2023 and 5 and 9 January 2024 all related to the same missed recycling collection. It escalated Ms X’s 24 December 2023 missed collection report with its contractors who attended Ms X’s property in mid-January and collected the waste. It also put Ms X’s property on a monitoring list to prevent recurrence.
• Ms X’s 27 February 2024 missed collection was collected later the same day.
27. Ms X told us her waste collections continue to be missed periodically and her bins are not always put back correctly despite her complaint to us.

Was there fault and did it cause injustice?

i) Ms X says the Council repeatedly failed to collect her assisted general household, recycling, and garden waste.

28. Based on the available evidence, I find:
1. The Council failed to collect Ms X’s general waste on 31 July 2023. Ms X therefore reported the matter on 1 August 2023 and the Council recollected on 3 August 2023. The Council has not provided an explanation for the missed collection. The Council’s failure to collect the bin was not in line with its policy (Paragraph 12) of a weekly collection and is fault. It meant Ms X had to go to inconvenience to report the issue which caused her avoidable frustration. This is injustice.
2. The Council failed to collect Ms X’s food/garden waste on 21 August 2023. Ms X therefore reported the matter on 23 August 2023. The available records do not show if and when the Council recollected the waste. Ms X explained it did not happen for some time and she then had to send a further complaint on 29 August 2023. The Council has not provided an explanation for the missed collection. The Council’s failure to collect Ms X’s food/garden waste was not in line with its policy (paragraph 14) and is fault. It caused Ms X avoidable frustration, as the waste continued to build up and emit a bad smell which caused her distress. This is injustice.
3. The Council failed to collect Ms X’s recycling waste on 23 December 2023. The Council has not provided an explanation for the missed collection but accepts it failed to return. Ms X therefore sent further reminders on 9 and 13 January 2024. The Council’s failure to collect and rearrange the collection in a reasonable time frame is not in line with its policy (paragraph 12) and is fault. This caused Ms X avoidable frustration and inconvenience as she had to send further reminders. She also experienced distress due to the waste build up over the four-week period until the Council arranged for its contractors to collect the waste (Paragraph 26). This is injustice.
4. The Council failed to collect Ms X’s general household waste on 26 February 2024. Ms X therefore reported it on 27 February and the Council returned to collect the waste on the same day (Paragraph 26). I do not find any fault in relation to the Council’s response or any significant injustice to Ms X on this occasion.

ii) Ms X says the Council waste collection crew did not properly return her bins to the agreed location.

29. The available evidence does not show when the Council’s bin crew failed to return Ms X’s bins to her agreed location after completing collections. Ms X was also unable to provide me with any independent evidence of dates to consider this issue further (Paragraph 19). However, I have no reason to doubt Ms X’s account and understand the potential impact of this issue on her life given her disabilities. I also note Ms X raised this matter in her complaint (Paragraphs 21 and 23). In my view the Council did not adequately address Ms X’s concerns about this issue in its responses. I note it accepted and apologised generally for its poor service which would have included Ms X’s experiences with her assisted collections (Paragraphs 22 and 24). The Council’s failure to address Ms X’s concerns about her assisted collections not being completed properly is fault. This caused Ms X frustration and distress and she felt the need to bring her complaint to the Ombudsman. This is injustice.

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Agreed action

30. Within one month of my final decision the Council has agreed to:
1. write to Ms X and apologise for:
• Failing to collect Ms X’s general, recycling and garden waste on the dates identified in this statement at paragraph 28 (a)-(c) and any avoidable frustration, inconvenience and distress caused to her.
• Failing to adequately address her complaint about the waste collection crew not returning her bins properly after emptying.
1. Make a symbolic payment of £150 to Ms X to reflect the avoidable frustration, inconvenience and distress caused to her by the faults identified in this statement.
2. Undertake a period of six weeks monitoring of Ms X’s general and recycling waste collection to confirm the situation has been adequately resolved.
3. Provide the collection crew dealing with Ms X’s assisted collections with a reminder to ensure bins are returned to her agreed location after emptying.
31. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Final decision

32. I find fault which caused injustice to Ms X. I have made recommendations to address the injustice and completed my investigation.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman