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Aug 23, 2023

Ombudsman orders Havering to procure new bins for resident

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has ruled in favour of a resident in a dispute over recycling collections with Havering London borough council. The council has been ordered to apologise

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has ruled in favour of a resident in a dispute over recycling collections with Havering London borough council.

The council has been ordered to apologise to the resident, named as Ms X, and buy two replacement two knee-high bins, cover the cost of a wheelie bin, and make an improvement to its service.

Havering was also ordered to pay the resident £50 as “the incident caused her inconvenience, uncertainty, and frustration.”

In a decision handed down on 14 June but published in the last week, the ombudsman explained that Ms X had complained to the council several times over missed collections.

The resident originally had two knee-high bins in which she kept her black waste bags for collection. However, she had trouble with these so bought herself a wheelie bin and later moved to assisted collections from the new bins.

A dispute then arose over contractors closing the lid. When Mrs X called to complain she originally received an apology, but was later told she should not have had assisted collections from a wheelie bin. The council said it had no record of whether or not she was told this wouldn’t be able to happen.

As there was no evidence, the ombudsman ruled based on the balance of probabilities.

In the ruling, the ombudsman said: “Even though there is no record of what the officer told Ms X on the phone when she first asked for an assisted collection, it is clear that she told the council what kind of bin she had each time she subsequently called about its subcontractors closing her bin lid.

“I therefore find it more likely that Ms X did tell the council when she first asked for an assisted collection that she put her waste in a wheelie bin. Also, Ms X told the council about her wheelie bin twice after that.

“I therefore find the council at fault for failing to tell Ms X it could not collect her waste from her wheelie bin.”

The ombudsman also noted that Ms X said that the council’s subcontractors have continued to collect her waste from her wheelie bin, despite the council saying they will not. She said she finds this confusing. The Ombudsman said this is an “injustice”.

Within four weeks, Havering has been ordered to issue a written apology to Ms X for the injustice resulting from its failure to inform her about the non-collection of waste from her wheelie bin during her assisted collection application.

Also within four weeks, the council will compensate Ms X with a £50 payment to cover the cost of her unused wheelie bin.

Within the same four-week timeframe, the council will procure two replacement knee-high bins and have them delivered directly to Ms X’s address. Prior communication will be established to notify Ms X about the delivery schedule.

Within three months, the council must also ensure that all staff members, including managers and call centre personnel, are reminded of the policy regarding non-collection of waste from wheelie bins. Clear guidance will be provided to staff for communicating this policy to customers who inquire about assisted collections, aiming to prevent future instances of misinformation.

The council is required to provide evidence demonstrating compliance with the actions.

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