Summary: Mr X complained the Council failed to provide him with a replacement bin. We found the Council was at fault for the lengthy delay in providing him with a replacement bin. We also found the Council at fault for failing to manage Mr X’s case proactively. This caused him inconvenience, uncertainty, frustration and put him to the time and trouble of complaining. The Council has now apologised and provided Mr X with a replacement bin. The Council agreed to our further recommendations to remedy the injustice caused.

The complaint

1. Mr X’s garden waste bin was damaged by the collection truck. He requested a new one from the Council. The Council said it would deliver a replacement within 28 days. Despite chasing, a bin was not delivered until Mr X made a formal complaint, six months after his initial request. Because he did not have a bin suitable for garden waste, Mr X had to bag his waste and take it to the refuse centre on a number of occasions.
2. Mr X wanted the Council to reimburse him for the cost of the garden waste collection service, which he pays in addition to his council tax. He also requested compensation, which the Council refused. He wants the Council to review its procedures for managing outstanding cases.

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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. 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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How I considered this complaint

5. I spoke to Mr X and read the information he and the Council provided to us about the complaint.
6. I gave Mr X and the Council the opportunity to comment on a draft version of this decision before I made a final decision.

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What I found

Refuse and recycling collections

7. Councils have a duty under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to arrange for the collection of 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.

What happened

2023

8. Mr X contacted the Council in October 2023. He explained that his brown (garden waste) bin had been damaged (split) by the collection truck earlier in the year. The damage had worsened over time to point that the bin had become unusable. He attached photos of the damaged bin and requested a replacement.
9. The Council replied to Mr X the next day, confirming that it had accepted his request and instructed its waste collection crew to provide a replacement bin within 28 days.
10. When a new bin was not delivered within the promised timescale, Mr X contacted the Council again. The Council responded promptly, explaining that there were some delays with deliveries and apologising for this. The Council confirmed that Mr X’s case had been referred to the Community and Environment team to ensure they were aware this matter remained outstanding.

2024

11. Mr X chased the Council in January, explaining that a new bin had still not been delivered. Given the time that had elapsed, he asked for the matter to be escalated within the Council.
12. Again the Council replied promptly, and again it apologised for the delay. It also apologised for the inconvenience caused to Mr X. It explained that the depot was awaiting new stock of brown bins, but that these were expected soon. Again, Mr X’s case was referred to the Community and Environment team, on this occasion with a note that the bin should be delivered urgently once stock had arrived.
13. Three months later, in April, when the bin had still not arrived, Mr X lodged a formal complaint. His new bin was delivered within 24 hours, six months after his original request.
14. The Council responded to Mr X’s complaint, apologising for the fact that he had had to wait “far longer than usually anticipated” for a replacement bin, over a timescale that exceeded the Council’s service level agreement with its waste contractor, and that this was due to low stock levels. As a bin had now been provided, it considered the matter closed.
15. Mr X escalated his complaint to the second stage of the Council’s process. It responded to him in May, admitting that his initial complaint should have been replied to more fully, and that the bin should have been provided sooner. It explained that the delay in bins coming into stock had been caused by a manufacturing delay. When the bins did come into stock, the waste contractor had prioritised properties that were without a bin entirely above those with a damaged bin. The Council confirmed that the supply chain issue was resolved and would not recur. It declined to offer Mr X compensation. Finally, the Council said that it had “reviewed the monitoring of tasks to enable escalation at an earlier stage when there are delays.”
16. Mr X complained to the Ombudsman in June.

Mr X’s account

17. Mr X told us that he had had to bag up his garden waste and make “five or six” trips to the refuse centre (a six-mile round trip) over the months that he was without a useable bin. He suspected that bins were in stock sooner than the Council had said, because it was able to deliver one within 24 hours of him submitting a formal complaint.
18. Mr X said that he would like to see the Council make service improvements, because each time he had called to chase progress, his case was updated with a note saying “customer called”, but this did not result in any action being taken. He said that if the Council had a robust system for routine monitoring of overdue cases, this would have highlighted the problem in his case without the need for him to chase, or to take further action in the form of a complaint.

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Analysis

19. The Council accepted there was unacceptable delay in fulfilling Mr X’s request for a replacement bin. This was fault. The Council has already apologised to Mr X, several times, and has now provided him with the replacement bin. While this deals with the lack of a suitable bin, it does not reflect the five months of delay that caused Mr X frustration. Further, in the absence of a garden waste bin, Mr X was unable to make use of the garden waste service to which he had subscribed, and was put to the inconvenience of making several trips to the refuse centre that would otherwise have been unnecessary. I welcome the Council’s apologies; however, I have made a further recommendation to remedy the injustice caused.
20. I understand the difficulties in this case were largely outside the Council’s control given it was dependent on the manufacturer providing the replacement bins. However, the Council remains responsible for ensuring Mr X had a new bin and I am concerned it failed to manage Mr X’s expectations by contacting him proactively to explain the difficulty it was having with securing new bins. In not doing so, the Council caused uncertainty and frustration and put him to the time and trouble of chasing and, ultimately, complaining. Failure to keep Mr X updated is fault. I have made a recommendation to remedy the injustice caused to Mr X.

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Agreed action

21. Within one month of the date of this report, the Council has agreed to:
• Refund Mr X’s garden waste subscription payment of £55 for the year 2023-2024, in light of the lengthy delay in providing a garden waste bin that would have enabled him to make use of the service.
• Pay Mr X £50 for inconvenience, uncertainty, frustration, and for putting him to the time and trouble of chasing and complaining, and making trips to the refuse centre, over a period of five months.
• Review its processes for a) escalating cases that breech agreed timescales and b) proactively communicating with customers in cases of delay.
22. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Final decision

23. I have completed my investigation with a finding of fault causing an injustice.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman