Did you know you can be fined for handing your waste to an unlicensed waste disposal operator, who then goes on to fly tip the items?
Unfortunately, two householders were recently prosecuted and fined a total of £884 for these offences. One resident was fined £434 after admitting to using social media to try and have waste removed which was found fly tipped. Another householder received a fine totalling £450 after admitting passing waste to a removals business without carrying out adequate checks; the waste was later found fly tipped in Knowsley.
The fine highlights that every person has a duty of care to make sure that waste is disposed of legally, including householders. If an unlicensed operator collects your waste and it is fly tipped, you can be fined.
Cllr Shelley Powell, Knowsley’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Neighbourhoods said: “Residents are reminded to be extra vigilant when using social media to look for someone to collect their waste – as some businesses advertising are not legally permitted to do so. They also need to check the operator has the correct licence – a Waste Carrier Licence – before allowing their waste to be taken away.
“Fly tipping is a blight on our communities and has serious environmental consequences. Therefore, as a local authority we can and will fine householders who haven’t taken the responsible steps to ensure their waste is passed to an authorised waste carrier.”
Householders using private contractors to remove household, garden or construction waste must make sure the company or individual is a registered waste carrier. You are advised to:
- Ask the person who collects your waste to see their registration – it should start with CBDU, followed by a set of numbers. Take a photo if possible.
- Ring the Environment Agency on 03708 506506 to check their credentials or visit their website: https://www.gov.uk/find-registered-waste-carrier
- Ask where they’re proposing to take your waste and if they have a waste transfer note.
- Don’t pay cash. Ask for an invoice and pay by a secure payment method or cheque, so payments can be traced if the waste is fly tipped.
- If it sounds too good to be true it probably is. If you’re hiring a skip, the average cost should be around £150.
- Never agree to cold callers offering any type of home improvements work, roofing, gardening services, tree surgery or household waste removal.
You can expect to see a ‘Waste Carrier Registration’ for these types of businesses:
- All building and associated trades,
- Landscape gardeners, tree fellers and surgeons,
- House clearers,
- Retail establishments and,
- Scrap metal dealers.
Residents can also dispose of their waste at Knowsley’s two Household Recycling and Waste Centres run by the Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority at Wilson Road, Huyton and Depot Road, Kirkby. Find out more by visiting their website https://www.merseysidewda.gov.uk/
Alternatively, Knowsley Council also operate a Bulky Waste collection service. Find out more here.
Report it
If you see an incident of fly tipping in Knowsley please report it here so our Environmental Health team can clear it and investigate.
For further details on Duty of Care and how to check whether a business can legally collect your waste, please see this page: Bins, waste and recycling | Knowsley Council