The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: Mr X complained the Council routinely fails to close the lid on his bin after collecting his household waste. Mr X also complains that despite repeated assurances from the Council that the service would improve the problem has continued. The repeated failure to close the lid on Mr X’s household waste bin after collection is fault. This fault has caused Mr X an injustice.
The complaint
The complainant, whom I shall refer to as Mr X complained the Council routinely fails to close the lid on his bin after collecting his household waste despite closing all his neighbours’ bin lids. Mr X also complains that despite repeated assurances from the Council that the service would improve the problem has continued.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
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) 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)
How I considered this complaint
As part of the investigation, I have: considered the complaint and the documents provided by Mr X; made enquiries of the Council and considered the comments and documents the Council provided; discussed the issues with Mr X; Mr X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.
What I found
Mr X has been complaining since October 2021 that the collection crew do not routinely close the lid on his household waste bin after emptying it. This means that when it rains water collects in the bin which he then has to empty. Mr X feels this is a deliberate action by the collection crew as it is only his bin lid that is left open, all his neighbours’ bin lids are closed after collection.
Mr X made formal complaints to the Council about this failure in October 2021, February 2022, March 2022, and September 2022. In response to each complaint the Council confirmed its policy was to return bins to their collection point with the lids closed. It also confirmed a service manager would speak to the crew to remind them of their obligation.
In its response to Mr X’s most recent complaint the Council told Mr X it took this matter seriously and that behaviour of this nature was not acceptable and would not be tolerated. The matter had again been passed to a manager to deal with the individuals concerned. As the problem has persisted Mr X has asked the Ombudsman to investigate his complaint.
The Council’s response to my enquiries suggests it is possible the refuse crew is “bin dipping” Mr X’s bin and placing the bags in a neighbour’s bin to move to the collection vehicle. In doing so, the lid to Mr X’s bin is left open. The Council states that once a bin is tipped into the back of the collection vehicle the lid closes automatically.
It states there is no evidence to suggest the failure to close the lid on Mr X’s bin is anything other than poor work performance.
Analysis It is clear from the documentation provided that the Council has repeatedly failed to close the lid on Mr X’s household waste bin. These failings in the service amount to fault. It is disappointing that despite repeated complaints and assurances it will improve, the issue has continued for over a year. Given that Mr X’s bin lid is the only one routinely left open on his street it is not surprising he perceives this to be a deliberate action.
The Council has confirmed its policy is to return bins to the collection point with their lids closed after emptying them and that the failure to do so is not acceptable. However, there is no evidence the Council has taken effective action to address this. The Council has repeatedly assured Mr X that a manager will speak to the crew and the service will improve, yet the problem persists.
The Council now suggests the issue is caused by the crew bin dipping, which is itself an unacceptable practice, but it is unclear how it has reached this conclusion. The Council has not monitored Mr X’s collections and its responses to Mr X do not refer to this practice.
It is concerning that either the instructions from service managers were not effectively conveyed, or more worryingly, that collection crews are not concerned about what, if any, the consequences of disregarding these instructions would be. In either case, this issue must be addressed.
As the Council considers this to be an issue of poor staff performance we would expect it to actively seek to raise performance standards.
The occasional failure to close Mr X’s bin lid may be viewed as a minor inconvenience. However, this is more than the occasional occurrence, and each time the bin lid is left open in the rain, Mr X has to manoeuvre the bin to empty the rainwater out. Mr X has had to do this many times over the course of the year. This is particularly frustrating for Mr X as only his bin lid is left open, and the Council has repeatedly told him it should not happen and will be resolved.
Agreed action
The Council has agreed to apologise to Mr X and pay him £100 in recognition of the frustration and difficulties the repeated failure to close his bin lid after collection has caused.
The Council has also agreed to arrange to monitor Mr X’s household waste collections for eight weeks to ensure the collections are carried out properly and the bin is returned to the collection point with the lid closed.
The Council should carry out this action within one month of the final decision on this complaint and should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.
Final decision
The repeated failure to close the lid on Mr X’s household waste bin after collection is fault. This fault has caused Mr X an injustice.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman