Duty of care

Advice for homeowners

Householders are legally responsible for any household waste produced on their property.

You could be fined if your waste ends up fly-tipped and you cannot show that you took reasonable steps to prevent it. There are several ways to dispose of the waste that cannot go into your wheeled bins:

• Take large waste items to your local recycling and waste site (tip)
• Ask to see a valid waste carriers license. When shown, make sure you check the registration number is valid on the waste carriers register - which can be done on the Environment Agency website by clicking here
• Our large waste items for collection service allows for up to 3 large household items or 12 sacks of waste to be collected for a charge of £43.75

Advice for landowners

Land owners are responsible for removing any fly-tipping found on private land. However, you should always report fly-tipping to us. If through our investigations we are able to identify and prosecute the fly-tippers we can apply for clean-up costs to be reimbursed.

There are a number of steps that you can take to help prevent fly-tipping on your land:

• Install gates and barriers, and improve visibility in the area
• Keep areas tidy and remove any fly-tipped waste quickly to discourage others
• Deter potential fly-tippers with signage or cameras
• Work with others including your neighbours, local businesses and any existing partnerships

Advice for businesses

Under the Environmental Protection Act, every business has a duty of care when it comes to disposing of its waste. And not meeting your legal responsibilities could result in a fine or imprisonment.

Here’s our simple guide to disposing of your business waste responsibly:

• It is a legal requirement for businesses to use a licensed waste carrier to remove their waste
• Provide a written description of your waste to the company collecting your waste
• Fill in a Waste Transfer Note which must be signed by both parties involved in the disposal of the waste
• Keep a signed copy of your Waste Transfer Note - you must keep these for a period of 2 years
• Inform the people removing your waste if you have any unexpected or unusual additions to your waste so that it can be disposed of appropriately
• Take action if you think your waste is being mishandled by the person/people who remove it – you could be fined if they are illegally flytipping this waste

Harborough District Council Trade Waste Services

We can provide your business with a trade waste and recycling service that meets your legal responsibilities, and at a competitive price. Join over 800 businesses in the Harborough district and surrounding areas that have already trusted us to manage the collection and disposal of their business waste.

We can provide:

• Regular collections – weekly, fortnightly, monthly or bespoke timescales to suit your business needs
• One-off collections – usually with just a few days' notice

Request a quote for the collection of your business' recycling and waste.