The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about missed waste collections. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating.
The complaint
Miss X complained the Council repeatedly missed her waste collections. She said it missed her property even through it collected waste from other houses and returned waste to her property.
She said rubbish accumulated in her garden leading to rats in her kitchen. She wants the Council to empty her bins, organise pest control services to remove the rats and compensation.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
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 further investigation would not lead to a different outcome (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Miss X complained the Council missed several bin collections. The Council reviewed its collection records and said it missed one collection since June and three due to staffing issues. It said it had not intentionally missed Miss X’s collections and apologised. That remedies any injustice caused. Further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.
In response to Miss X’s complaint the Council monitored a collection in October 2025 and said no waste was presented. The crew knocked on Miss X’s door to offer support if required. The Council provided Miss X with a copy of the waste collection calendar and recycling leaflet. There is not enough evidence of fault in how the Council dealt with her concerns about the missed collections to justify the Ombudsman’s involvement.
Miss X said the Council returned waste to her property. The Council said it had no record of returning waste to her property, and it would be difficult for the crew to identify which house to return waste to. We will not investigate this part of Miss X’s complaint, as further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.
Final decision
We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify our involvement.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman