Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council charging the complainant for bins. This is mainly because there is insufficient evidence of fault.

The complaint

1. Miss X says the Council should not be charging her £90 for replacement bins because it did not previously supply bins to her property. She says the Council told her to falsely report her bins as stolen if she wanted to get free bins.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. The Environmental Protection Act 1990 says the Council can charge for providing bins. The Council charges for replacement bins, except in certain circumstances.
6. Miss X is unhappy about paying £90 for replacement bins. She says a property she bought and rented out had no bins when she bought it, so the Council should provide free new bins.
7. I recognise that Miss X is unhappy about paying for her bins. However, there is insufficient evidence of fault to justify further investigation. The Council can charge for providing the bins. It has considered Miss X’s circumstances under its policy and decided that she does not qualify for free bins. It has information showing there were previously bins at the property. It has followed the law and its own policy.
8. Miss X says the Council told her to falsely tell the police her bins were stolen. There is insufficient evidence of fault to justify further investigation of this. The Council was explaining to Miss X how it operated its replacement bins policy. There is nothing to show that the Council told Miss X to report theft if she did not believe any theft had happened.
9. The two replacement bins cost £90. In the context of a landlord renting out a property, that is not a significant enough amount to warrant the Ombudsman investigating. This is another reason we will not investigate the complaint.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint. There is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. There is also not enough injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman