‘Stay vigilant’ message as woman gets fly-tipping fine

The call comes after a woman was fined after rubbish she paid someone to remove from her garage was dumped in a scenic area of the Harborough district.

When the flytipping, which had been dumped next to Saddington reservoir (pictured), was reported to Harborough District Council on 12 April 2021, its Environmental Crime Team investigated and found evidence amongst the rubbish tracing it back to a Leicester resident.

When interviewed, the woman, in her 50s, admitted hiring a man to take away her household rubbish in his van and failing to check whether he was registered to carry and dispose of the waste.

She was issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice for £300.

Cllr Jonathan Bateman, Harborough District Council’s Cabinet lead for environment and waste, said: “We cannot say this more strongly; it is vital that people stay vigilant and check if someone is licensed to remove waste from their property. If you are in any doubt about whether the person or company removing your waste is licenced to do so, please do not use them. If it is illegally dumped, you will be held responsible.”

Householders are legally responsible for any household waste produced on their property. They have a ‘duty of care’ to check that any person or business disposing of their waste is legally allowed to do so.

There are several ways to dispose of the waste that cannot go into wheeled bins:

• Take large waste items to your local recycling and waste site (tip)
• Use a licensed waste carrier to remove your waste - it is a legal requirement to use a licensed waste carrier (you can also check if someone has a licence on the Environment Agency website)
• The Council’s large waste items for collection service allows for up to three large household items or 12 sacks of waste to be collected for a charge of £35.04.

For further advice visit www.harborough.gov.uk/tip-off