Summary: Mr B complains the Council’s contractor does not return his bins to the collection point and instead leaves them at his gate, despite being registered to receive assisted refuse collections. There was fault by the Council in the way it repeatedly failed to return Mr B’s bins to the agreed assisted collection point. Because of this, Mr B suffered frustration and uncertainty and could not access his bins. The Council will apologise to Mr B, make a symbolic payment, monitor his collections and issue a staff briefing.

The complaint

1. Mr B complains the Council’s contractor does not return his bins to the assisted collection point and instead leaves them at his gate, despite being registered to receive assisted refuse collections.
2. Mr B says as a result of the Council’s failings he cannot access his bins, cannot recycle, and there is uncertainty around failed assisted collections happening again in the future.

Back to top

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 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)
5. 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)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

6. I read Mr B’s complaint and spoke to him about it on the phone.
7. I considered information provided by Mr B and the Council.
8. Mr B and the Council have had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I have considered their comments before making a final decision.

Back to top

What I found

9. Councils have a duty under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to collect household waste and recycling from properties in its area. The collections do not have to be weekly and councils can decide the type of bins or boxes people must use.
10. The Council’s practice is to make a weekly household waste collection and food and garden waste collection. It makes an alternate weekly collection for the two recycling bins, one for plastic, metal and glass, and the other for paper and cardboard.
11. The Council provides an assisted collection service for people who cannot move their bins due to a disability or age. The Council should collect the bins from the storage point and return them to the same point.

What happened

12. This is a summary of events, outlining key facts and does not cover everything that has occurred in this case.
13. In September 2023, Mr B asked to receive assisted collections from the Council. The request reason on the Council’s system noted Mr B has ‘Medical and mobility issues that prevent them from managing and moving the bins effectively’. The location of waste was recorded as ‘Wheelie bins or sacks should be visible for the operative to collect by front door’.
14. On 25 September 2023, Mr B reported a missed collection to the Council.
15. On 17 October 2023, Mr B reported to the Council the collection crew did not return his blue bin to the assisted collection point after collection.
16. On 29 November 2023, the Council added a note onto its system that said ‘Bins must be returned to presentation point at the side wall near front door’.
17. Mr B reported to the Council his bins were also not returned to the assisted collection point on the following dates:
• 6 December 2023;
• 28 December 2023;
• 10 January 2024;
• 16 January 2024; and
• 23 January 2024.
18. On 23 January 2024, the Council contacted its contractor and asked it to monitor collections at Mr B’s address.
19. On 9 March 2024, Mr B raised a stage one complaint with the Council. He told the Council he wanted to know why the collection crew was not retuning his black bin to the assisted collection point, by his front door.
20. On 14 March 2024, the Council sent a stage one complaint response to Mr B. It told him it had flagged the issue with a manager at the waste collection contractor and the operations team would be putting measures in place to ensure the bins would be returned to the collection point. It also told Mr B he would see an improved service.
21. On 18 March 2024, Mr B reported to the Council his black bin was not returned to the assisted collection point.
22. On 20 March 2024, Mr B raised a stage two complaint with the Council and told it the issues were still continuing. He told the Council he could not access his bin because the collection crew had left it 20 metres away from his property after collection.
23. On 26 April 2024, the Council sent a stage two complaint response to Mr B. It apologised for the drop in service standards and for the inconvenience caused and told Mr B it had added notes to the contractors system to remind crews to return the bins to Mr B’s property after collection.
24. In June 2024, a Council staff member visited Mr B to confirm the assisted collection point. Following the visit the Council updated the notes on the system for the collection crew, advising the bins must be returned to Mr B’s property by the door after collection.

Analysis

25. It is clear from the documentation provided there have been failings in the assisted collection service the Council has provided to Mr B.
26. Since Mr B has been registered to receive assisted collections from the Council, Mr B has made at least ten reports to the Council of the collection crew not returning his bins to the assisted collection point. This was fault.
27. The Council told us it made its contractor aware in March 2024 of Mr B’s stage one complaint and updated the crew notes on the system to return Mr B’s bins to his property by his door. It said at this time the crew notes stated ‘Please ensure all waste is collected and bins are returned to this assisted property’, and there may have been a discrepancy between the collection and return point of the bins. This is because the crew noted occasions where the bins were placed on the road ready for collection, so they were often returned to the road after collection, rather than to Mr B’s door. Mr B told us although he has a carer who is occasionally able to bring the bins in from the road, they are never placed on the road by anyone for collection. He told us when the crew have found the bins on the road ready for collection, this would be from the previous week’s collection when the crew have left them there instead of returning them to the collection point. The crew should not have assumed Mr B was able collect his bins from the road, just because they were sometimes on the road at collection times. Mr B was registered to receive assisted collections, and the Council should have provided him with this service.
28. Despite the Council’s assurances to Mr B measures would be put in place to ensure the bins would be returned to the collection point and told him he would see an improved service, the service did not improve and Mr B’s bins were still not routinely returned to his property by his door.
29. The Council told us, and Mr B’s request for assisted collections show the expected collection point was at his property by his door. I recognise the Council has said there may have been a discrepancy between the collection point and return point of the bins, but I do not consider, and the Council has acknowledged, it should not have taken ten reports from Mr B for it to investigate the problem. Mr B first reported the issue in September 2024. It was not resolved until June 2024. This was fault.
30. Mr B has not been able to access his bins on several occasions due to the Council’s failures, and has suffered uncertainty about whether the issue was going to continue. He has also experienced frustration that despite his reports and complaints, the bins were still not routinely returned. He has put time and trouble into pursuing the matter. This was an injustice.
31. Sometimes we will recommend a financial payment to the person who brought their complaint to us. This might be to reimburse a person who has suffered quantifiable financial loss, or it might be more of a symbolic payment which serves as an acknowledgement of the distress or difficulties they have been put through. But our remedies are not intended to be punitive and we do not award compensation in the way a court might. Nor do we calculate a financial remedy based on what the cost of the service would have been to the provider.
32. The Ombudsman has published guidance to explain how we calculate remedies for people who have suffered injustice because of fault by a Council. Our primary aim is to put people back in the position they would have been in if the fault by the Council had not occurred.
33. In response to my enquiries, the Council said it:
• will continue to monitor the issue through missed collection reports and complaints;
• will proactively check GPS tracking of collection vehicles and CCTV for a further four collection cycles;
• has given additional notes to the collection crew; and
• offers a symbolic payment of £100 to Mr B for his time spent having to raise reports and complaints.
34. I am not satisfied that in the circumstances of this complaint, £100 is an appropriate symbolic remedy for Mr B. Given the prolonged period the issues were ongoing and how many times Mr B reported the problem, I do not consider this amount fully acknowledges the impact of the injustice caused by the fault. I have made a recommendation below to reflect this.
35. The Council told us it has not had contact from Mr B about the problem since May 2024, which would indicate the issues are resolved. Mr B told us the issues with the bins not being returned to the collection point are still ongoing, and the reason he has not been reporting them to the Council is because he had referred the complaint to the Ombudsman for a further investigation. I have made a recommendation below taking into consideration the ongoing issues.

Back to top

Agreed actions

36. To remedy the outstanding injustice caused to Mr B by the fault I have identified, the Council will take the following action within four weeks of my final decision:
• Apologise to Mr B for not returning his bins to the assisted collection point and the delay in investigating the issue. This should be in accordance with the Ombudsman’s guidance Making an effective apology.
• Pay Mr B a symbolic payment of £200 for the frustration caused to him and the time and trouble spent reporting the issues and raising complaints.
• Monitor Mr B’s assisted collections for two months following the final decision. It will ensure it collects, empties, and returns the bins to the collection point.
• Issue a briefing to relevant staff members including those who work for the contactor to remind them of the importance of returning bins to the agreed collection point for people registered to receive assisted collections.

Back to top

Final decision

37. I have completed my investigation and uphold Mr B’s complaint. There was fault by the Council which caused injustice to Mr B. The action it has agreed to take is sufficient to remedy that injustice.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman