Resident’s bin not collected as contents ‘frozen’, says council leaflet

A resident in North Hertfordshire whose council did not collect his bin, claiming the contents had frozen due to the cold weather, described the incident as “farcical”.

Mr Fursie, who does not wish to use his real name, 58, was due to have his garden waste bin collected on Tuesday morning, but the waste was not collected and a leaflet bearing the logos of North Herts Council and East Herts Council was left on his bin.

The notice said the contents of Mr Fursie’s bin were frozen, making it difficult to empty, and included advice for residents to loosen the contents with a spade or leave bins in a warm place such as a garage or shed.

Mr Fursie told the PA news agency: “The idea we have to keep it somewhere warm is farcical especially when they sometimes arrive early morning.

“I have plenty of suitable plots but they are round the back of the garden – I’m not getting up at 6.30 to wheel them out the front.

“I’m sure a quick shake of the bin would have fixed it.”

The front of the leaflet read: “Due to the cold weather the contents of your bin have frozen.

“We have attempted to empty your bin but this was unsuccessful.”

Mr Fursie shared a picture and a video of the contents which showed old leaves and grass clumped together, while ice and frost coated the inside of the bin.

In the video, he used a spade to demonstrate the ease of breaking up the debris and said the contents were “certainly not frozen”.

The resident said his last collection was four weeks ago and he has been waiting since the festive period, when there are fewer collections, to have his garden waste disposed of.

He said he will now have to wait two weeks until his bin is collected.

“This was the first collection in four weeks as they miss one around Christmas time,” he said.

He said it costs him £50 a year to have his garden waste bins emptied by the council, which are collected bi-weekly.

Mr Fursie also said he was shocked after noticing a plastic coating on the leaflet, raising concerns about its impact on the environment.

“The leaflets are (clearly) shocking for the environment. Plastic coated paper. A sticker would be better,” he said.

The PA news agency has contacted North Herts Council and East Herts Council for comment.