Flowers after a fatal accident

[NeverTrustAPoliceman]

What would Mumsnetters do?

I litter pick regularly along a few local roads, the busiest ones get lots of rubbish thrown from cars.

Between Christmas and New Year there was a fatal accident and flowers, in plastic wrappings, were placed along the nearby fence. Since then, the flowers have died and gone mushy in the frost. The packaging is looking very unsightly, there are no cards or messages.

Do I ignore it in the hope that the bereaved family or friends come to clear it up, or is it acceptable to clear it myself now?

The Queen's flowers were removed after about a week I think. Does that mean it's always OK?

Once they start to look awful they become rubbish, so just remove them like the council do.

No one else is going to clear it up. I think after 2 months now it’s acceptable to pick it all up

Remove it. The bereaved can lay some more if they want to?
I know it’s a sensitive subject though.

Another vote for pick it up. If the flower layers were coming back they’d already have been.

Pick it up , if the people who laid them want to lay more live ones they can .

I always think it's a shame people leave the plastic wrapping on when they leave flowers in this way.

Hmm. There were loads of flowers -real and plastic - laid in the wire netting around a tree after an accident, as well as cards etc. After several years, the plastic flowers are still there- gang/ drugs related incident. I don’t know if people were scared to remove them.

It’s fine to clear it once they’re dying.

The family aren’t going to do it. You could ring the council and ask them to but it would take forever

I don’t think people who lay them think about who’s going to clear it up. Plastic wrapping and rotten flowers I’m sure they’d be fine you cleaning up for them

It is littering if they don't remove and dispose of, so I would dispose of them next time you are there.

I find it so disrespectful of the layers, that they place these flowers and leave them to rot, and expect 'someone else' to pick up their stinking squelchy bunches. Ughhhhhh. #harsh

OK, a consensus! I will remove them next week. The family involved have a bit of a reputation locally for being tough so I wanted to check.

My family have been told that if I get killed in car crash there are to be no flowers.

My mum said "If you leave flowers for me at least take the plastic wrapper off"

Yes remove them. They are damaging to wild life . I wish people would take the wrapping off when laying flowers

Could you put a post on your local community page and explain and that you’re happy to tidy next time you go that way? These things are super sensitive and whilst I agree that if you’re willing to, to remove them, I think it’s worth letting ‘them’ know

Ask the council what they would suggest. They may contact the family of those involved first.

I’d remove them if they’re rotten, I wouldn’t want flowers left at the roadside for me if I died in an accident, and definitely not rotting ones!

If you feel guilty for removing them, perhaps you could lay a pretty stone/shell or something in their place? I’d feel bad about removing the flowers however unsightly and environmentally damaging they are but I might put something else there instead. I know it sounds a bit daft 🙈

Some council’s highway departments have policies about roadside tributes, might be worth asking them?

Remove them but if there are cards on them perhaps keep those and give to the family. My best friend died in a bike accident last year and that's what we did for his mum.