To think this is petty

[novalia89]

I live in a flat and our bins haven't been put out for 6 weeks now. I think we missed 2 collections. Therefore our bins have been overflowing. I have been taking my rubbish elsewhere as I don't create a lot. Someone else dealt with some of the bin bags, but with 10 flats there are a lot. I think that it is a particularly bad time and people also don't recycle. The loose bin bags have been ripped open and tidied since.

Anyway, I complained to the management company who I think did nothing and the council. I got 2 excess bin bags, although it is the whole flats bin bags that haven't been put out.

Our bins are collected tomorrow and it is not 22:20. I noticed that the flats opposite had about 10 small bins with plenty of room so I put a few smaller bins in. A house opposite had a small bin which was half full. I put a half-full bin bag in it which was very light. Probably bag for life size. All the bins that I used could close their lids completely.

As soon as I'd done it a man came out, got the bin out the wheelie bin and dumped it next to one of the public rubbish bins. They are collected tomorrow morning!

Am I being unreasonable to think that that is petty? I wouldn't ordinarily do this but surely it is better than looking at overflowing bins and rubbish all of the floor which might promote rats. And he was effectively fly-tipping. His bin was still only 3/4 full after I'd put the bin in. What was he gaining?

Like I said, I wouldn't ordanarily do this, but our bins have got out of hand and if they aren't collected again the problem will escalate and they are collected in about 12 hours.

*I don’t understand this.

Who is responsible for putting your bins out? Why did you go fly tipping down the road?*

Not sure why so many are confused.

Block of flats - ten communal bins. Must be out on rod or aren't collected.

OP only one who does this, has been away, has not been done = lots of extra rubbish = shitshow.

You have my sympathies OP, I've been there.

Road not rod.

Yes, he was being petty and making a point. You were trying to be tidy with the bins. Sounds like management need to send everyone a stroppy note about the bins because it won't look good and is a massive health hazard.

Yes I own my flat. I get the feeling that most people are tenants and there are some house owners. I have a ground floor flat which isn't right next to the bins but my neighbours flat open all their window onto the bins. We have a small bit of land in front of the flats, about 2m wide between the front and the road, containing all 15 bins and a small metal fence and a small wall at the end. My flat thankfully, is on the other side of the wall.

The bins are collected every 2 weeks and it is the responsibility of the owners and tenants to put the bins out, not the council or management company. There are 5 unlabelled grey (rubbish) bins which are shared by everyone.

It's done now.

MerryInthechelseahotel oh...my....God! How that isn't illegal I don't know! There must be rats, mice, flies, and snakes everywhere around there. That is definitely unsanitary. Here if a bin company is 2 days late doing the weekly run it is on the news and the council get involved. People's bins here are often over-full and can't close the lid and that is with collection once a week. How on earth we'd all cope with once every 2 weeks, let alone 3, is well. It just would not be possible.

Surely that must contravene some sanitary laws? Especially in summer? I don't know how to word this without sounding rude and I don't mean to, but are you in a developing country by any chance?

He was petty
Good for you
Getting your own locked bin is a good idea
Doesn’t help with the health and safety aspect of communal bin area though
Can you lobby the council that each flat is allocated it’s own bin?

SalemBlackCat haha no, welcome to the UK.

Rats, mice, flies outside yes (I live quite inner city Manchester). Snakes, probably not :)

Freudian she didn’t pass the problem on. She used empty bin space.

We have fortnightly collections and the general waste bin really does get smelly in summer, i don’t know what the solution is. Especially with things like cat litter and nappies. Recycling on the other hand could go monthly if we were given a bigger bin.

Btw we have one general waste bin and one recycling bin. No splitting of recycling here so food waste / nappies / etc do get smelly and I can imagine if the bags were just left out they would get ripped into pretty quickly.

I'd be annoyed if I went to use my bin and found someone else had put their rubbish in it. I often put stuff in it right at the last minute.

Freudian she’s tried going through the system but it’s been inadequate. I’m not sure why anyone would be surprised that a council response is often inadequate, it seems fairly common. She called the council, and they gave her bags for putting the extra rubbish in that would be collected. But not enough bags. So she has bagged everything up as much as she can, put the bins and the extra bags out to be collected and tried to spread out the rubbish that won’t fit into “the system” into other neighbours’ bins. It’s not nice, or fair, on the other neighbours, and I don’t know that I would do it, but I can see why someone might try it after 6 weeks of no collections. If she doesn’t find a solution before the bins get emptied in the morning, there will still be overflow rubbish and the whole thing will go on for another two weeks.

Why did the neighbours backing onto the bins with them in their window not help?

I put my bin out very late at night to avoid neighbours putting their own rubbish in it.

I have a recycling bin and use. But some of neighbours can't be bothered. I don't see why I should let them put their overflow in my bin.

The cheekiest thing was when the bin was collected and I went to bring the bin after work I found the new occupants across the road had put their rubbish in it. Some of it was unbagged and made a mess of my bin.

So what did I do? I just tipped it out by their wall and swilled my bin out there as well.

Freudian It’s hardly the OP’s fault that she isn’t aware of the internal politicking of governmental departments.

Yes I agree it was petty.
If my bin had room I wouldn't care who put their rubbish in it especially in your circumstances. Judging by some of the responses you have got its disheartening how many petty people there are out there.

That system is unworkable, and it is always going to be the responsible minority doing the bins. even if you label the bins, the cheeky fuckers will just keep filling the other bins to overflowing, and leave theirs full.However you will be able to say who is not pulling their weight, Or at 8,30pm the night before bin day, you loudly bang at a few doors to summon help and make it obligatory. But you don't pass the problem down the street.

OP, I do feel for you, but you can't be surprised the bin's owner doesn't want this. We had a ridiculous situation in our first flat where we essentially didn't have access to a bin at all (we paid council tax, but our bin was padlocked shut and we had no access to it). We used to put a carrier bag of rubbish every day in the public bins in the town centre. So ridiculous. But we were very young and didn't know what to do! The council then wrote to us as they'd seen our name and address on the junk mail in the town bins and threatened to fine us if it happened again. And we still didn't ring them to say 'someone's padlocked our bin shut'. We were such idiots. We just moved out without resolving it after a year

I'd have done exactly the same as that man.

How do you know he didn't have rubbish waiting to go out?

The fact the bins are being collected tomorrow (or today) morning is irrelevant. You shouldn't have done that without asking.

He's not fly-tipping. It's his bloody bin.

Yabu. You dont put bin bags in other peoples bins. I bet that man was going to put a last bin bag in before the bin lorry came. You were rude.

Re the bins not being collected i dont understand. Just put your bin out.