Wheelie Bin Roundup 20th March

Wheelie Bin Roundup 20th March

Wheelie bin roundup 20th March

 

Northumbria Police have revealed that over 800 wheelie bins were stolen in Sunderland last year. Now the force is teaming up with the local council to spread the message to residents about how to keep your bin safe and away from thieves and vandals.

The police state that wheelie bins that are left out in the street after collection are easy targets for people who want to steal them or set them on fire. They are urging residents to put their bins out for collection as late as possible prior to collection, and to secure it behind a locked gate or lock it to a secure post. They also suggest bringing a neighbour’s bin in if it has been out all day. Marking wheelie bins with a postcode and house number can also allow for easier tracking if it gets stolen. Residents have to pay for a replacement bin, and also have to have the inconvenience of waiting for a replacement.

Wheelie Bins Out in the Street

The force plan to send some officers to a local shopping centre to speak to residents about preventing wheelie bin crime. The fire service also back the initiative, and state that they are frequently called out to put out wheelie bin fires when they are needed for an emergency elsewhere.

Read more at: https://www.sunderlandecho.com/news/more-eight-hundred-wheelie-bins-stolen-sunderland-year-357939

 A woman from County Durham was shocked to see footage of a bin man putting her wheelie bin in the back of his lorry and driving off. She went to take her bin back onto her property after the usual collection and noticed that it had gone missing. A neighbour who has CCTV overlooking her yard showed her the footage and she immediately contacted the council. However, the council told her she will have to pay £20 to replace the bin. The council said they are looking into the incident.

Read more: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4264392/CCTV-footage-shows-council-worker-chucking-bin-van.html

Residents in West Lancashire will have to start paying to have their garden waste collected from June. The council voted in favour of the charges when it set its budget for the next financial year. The charge will be set at £30 per year for one garden waste bin, and any additional bins will be charged at £25 per bin. Residents can opt in or out of using the service. The council blames reduced funding from central government for the introduction of the charges. Residents are due to receive a leaflet in April detailing what the charges are, and how to sign up if they wish to.

 Disabled people in Reading have been complaining about their bins not being collected since the council brought in a new collection system and changed the collection schedule. Disabled residents who previously qualified for ‘assisted collection’ have found that they aren’t having their bins automatically collected under the new system. Luckily, generous bin men, who were aware of the people who were in need, continued to help them,  even if their property wasn’t registered for assisted collection. The council have stated that people who have been missed have now been added to the assisted collection list.