to call 101 over people going through my bins?

[JeanGenie23]

It's a bit of a weird situation. It's been going on for a while I think but last Monday the people who live below me in the basement flat were having a clear out and as a result there were loads of extra bin bags in the drive. I left about 9.30am to take my dc to the park and by the time I had got back at 11.30am ish the bin bags had been slashed and rubbish was all over the drive, completely covered the whole area right up to the front door, I was raging mad. It looked like someone had been looking for something but I dismissed that thought, who goes looking through other people's bins? I put it down to a fox perhaps attracted to smell of nappies. I cleared it up whilst cussing a lot under my breath, but it had to be tidied otherwise bin men wouldn't take rubbish.

Fast forward to yesterday, my DD was crabby and I was trying to rock her to sleep whilst having a nosey out the window. I see two women with pushchairs and in the pushchairs are those large plastic laundry bags, and they are going through our neighbours bins and throwing some bits on the floor but other bits into their bags. I can see them coming up to our house so I go down and ask them not too. Their English is broken and they look dirty and their hair is matted. I said please leave I do not want you coming in our bins. Reluctantly they go, but I watch them down the street and they are joined by two men, similar dirty appearance and they go through everyone's bins, some more thoroughly than others.

This morning my food shop came about 7am and there were the two women but they have obviously been there are while because there was a mammoth mess, dirty nappies on the floor, food bits, a weeks worth of a families rubbish basically. I asked them to leave or I would call police so off they went.

Then again about 11am, these women and two men appear at the bins, this time wearing high visibility jackets claiming to be from the council. They aren't, it's obvious. I told them to go but the men grabbed two bin bags and went.

The bin bags are full of rubbish, occasionally there are clothes in, generally it's food, but because downstairs are having a clear out there is also a mix of things like usb cables, crockery and blankets.

I called 101 and I don't know if that was out of line. They are making so much mess and I am not prepared to keep doing this. It's a nuisance. Not crime of the century, and I feel bad because they must be in dire straits but they can't keep doing this can they? Especially not now they are pretending to work for council!

The police will be round within 60mins but I'm feel like I am just wasting their time to be honest. What do you all think?

I put paperwork in the compost (if I remember). The slugs eat all the writing off.

Very true *Gooseberry!

MrsDeVere-* it is degrading and I hate the thought they are suffering and in dire need. However it isn't ok to leave people's property in the kind of state they are. I wish I took a photograph now, it was like an animal has been there.

As I say I don't think anything will be done about it. The only way I reckon they will stop is if the police appear whilst they are here

I didn't realise usb cables and headphones could be recycled.

I did call the council but they said rind 101

scarednoob they were having you on. No email or any other information can be recovered from a length of cable. You know that right?

I think you should speak to them. They're human beings, they deserve empathy - and you sound thoughtful and like you want to help.

Next time you see them, approach them and ask them what they're looking for. Make it clear that if they tell you what their list is, you will put it aside in a separate carrier bag. In return you ask that they leave your bins alone and that they don't approach you (don't want them knocking on your door, especially with baby who may have fallen asleep).

It is illegal to go through rubbish in this way.

The charity I used to work for had this problem with people breaking locks on our bins and scattering rubbish everywhere. Interestingly the local council threatened as with a fly tipping notice because the owner of the rubbish is responsible for its control until it is collected.

I personally wouldn't worry about the thieves 'poverty''. There are organised gangs in many parts of the country ransacking rubbish and particularly local recycling areas where there are charity collection bins. The police do take this type of theft seriously; the gangs also use children (to go into collection banks) and other vulnerable people.

Btw don"t use the charity collection bags through your door as they are often used by this type of gang. If you wish, maybe you can trust a well-known charity, however we have had cases of fake bags with our charity's name on the bag.

I like that idea sushi. Thank you

scarennoob, you're winding us up

It's daft really. There's nothing to stop enterprising people picking up where the rag and bone men seem to have recently left off. That was a very workable system.

Ripping open bin bags and lying about being council employees is just alienating people like the OP who would happily put stuff aside for them. I know I would.

Silver- it's funny you mention charity clothes bags, I filled one up at the beginning of the year with children's clothes, and that bag was slashed open. I brought it inside the house thinking it must have been a fox and I didn't want to donate spiked or damaged clothes but in hindsight it probably wasn't. There have been many incidences of ripped open bins but because there isn't normally this amount of rubbish it goes relatively unnoticed

Glad you've called the police, OP. Yes, they could be searching for paperwork for ID theft; a friend of mine in the UK used to throw her paperwork in the bin and for her slackness had a fake ID, fake driving licence and 3 mobile phone contracts set up in her name. She now shreds or burns everything.

Even if they're looking for stuff to sell and/or recycle, what they're doing is littering, which is still a fineable offence. So hopefully the police will suggest to them in no uncertain terms that they should cease and desist - assuming that they're not already indulging in some criminal activity.

That was meant to say soiled clothes not spiked.

Yes Gooseberry you have hit the nail on the head entirely. I would happily give them items if they hadn't made a mess and pretended to work for the council. It's that that's rubbed me up the wrong way.

I thought the recycled metal market was finished.

The thing is this group are creating a mess and are sneaking around after dark.

When we've had a skip outside the house in the past, young men from the local travelling community have knocked and asked whether they can take stuff out, to that's the courteous way of doing things.

The rules are different where I live (Calif). Once your bins are on the street (for collection) they're fair game for anyone to go through. But if they left a mess they'd get cited for littering. But if your bins are on your drive (far up enough where someone couldn't reach them) then it would be trespassing for someone to walk up your drive to get to them.

We have locking bins because of wildlife rifling through them. Would that be an option for you? They're unlocked to deposit rubbage and on collection day.

If you notice what they're taking, maybe put it out in the open and leave the rest of the rubbish as normal?

As in leave what ever you think they want as obvious to stop them throwing the rubbish about. If 101 does nothing, it might stop the trashing if they find what they want easily.

Have you spoken to the neighbours on the street?

Hmm. I'd be:

• taking a discreet photo of them to show to police when they do turn up, since the people in question are probably doing a repetitive circuit around your area and this will make it easier for police to spot them.

• putting a sign up near the bins in English and Roma / whatever language you think they might speak, saying that they are making a mess and acting illegally, and that you're happy to leave things out separately per sushi's suggestion if they tell you what they're after.

• keeping the bins either locked or in your back garden until collection day.

Re locking bins; I did want to look into building some kind of wooden shelter to put bins in, mostly for aesthetic purposes but that would potentially keep away animals and people. Unless they wanted to break locks like a PP experienced.

Georgia- the issue is there seems to be little pattern with what they take. So they took some broken flip flops, but left behind woollen blankets. They took broken headphones as mentioned, and the candle holder but without going through the bin bags I can't be certain of anything else.

When they came back the second time today (in the high visibility jackets) and I asked them to leave they just picked up a whole Bin bag, without looking in it. It's very likely that that one will be full with kitchen rubbish.

We have this problem with charity bags
If you fill them and leave out on the requested day they have always been sorted through before the van comes to collect them
I have seen 2 women and a lad of about 16 walking round with an old pushchair and it appears they load the stuff into there

I would be worried about what they're doing with the unwanted items from the full bags they're taking - if they fly tip it and it's linked to you, then the fines are pretty big. Could you lock the bins in a shed or a hallway for a while? Not pleasant, but it might stop them if they can't get access for a few weeks.

5 hours on no sign of any police

Er, I believed the email cable thing. But then, my budgies are more techie than I am. Is that bollocks then? Sorry!!

Happens all the time round my way. It's bloody annoying as it causes a filthy mess, attracts rats and costs us all money via the cost to the council to clear it up. They take bags out of the wheelie bins and leave the contents scattered all over the back lanes.