Neighbour putting bins outside DM's door

[CanaBanana]

My DM lives in a tiny Victorian semi. None of them have front gardens or front doors because they're right on the main road. The only access is via a side door that opens from an alley between each pair of houses.

In recent years many residents have bricked up the side door and replaced it with a door into the back garden. It's much nicer to have a door you can leave open for fresh air and garden access, easier for kids and dogs to run in and out, etc. My DM however has never been able to afford to do this - her door is still in the alley. Next door (opposite side of the alley) has their door in the garden.

DM's neighbour has recently (since the hot weather) started putting her bins in the alley. It's wide enough so access isn't restricted but it isn't very nice for DM to have a bin within a couple of feet of her door with smells and clouds of flies.

DM has complained but the neighbour says she isn't willing to have a smelly bin and flies in her small garden. But it's ok to put it outside DM's door?! It's a shared alley so neighbour insists she has the right to store things there. Which she does, but putting her bin outside DM's door isn't the same as putting a bike there, for example.

We've put the bins back in her garden repeatedly. She keeps putting them back in the alley. AIBU to ask some of the local teens to make sure her bins go "missing" if she leaves them in the alley where anyone can nick them?

Are you going to print off and check the deeds?

OP are you going to employ any of the hugely sensible suggestions offered up by posters or are you just going to continue to insist YANBU and continue to be a CF yourself by moving neighbours bins and treaspassing?

Clearly the neighbour should clean their bin, but as they haven’t and they aren’t bothered by it then the obvious solution is for you to do it, or pay to have it done! Then ask your neighbour to be stringent about bagging their refuse- buy them large bin bags if needs be- surely all this is cheaper in the long run and maintains neighbourly harmony?!

Or check your deeds as others have suggested (though to enforce any ruling that states it’s not for storage is surely going to cost you a load of cash in hiring solicitors).

Or do you just want people to agree with you? Personally I don’t.

I don't think OP's mum should have to put up with the stinking bins to be honest. Then again if the NDN has paid for the renovations to her house so she doesn't have bins in her back garden, then I get her perspective too. I don't think OP has really reacted to helping towards a happy resolution by dumping NDN's bins back in the garden everytime though - bin storage systems cost around £90-120. Maybe they could split the cost or suggest a £20-40 good will contribution rather than OP's mum forking out 2-3k to have her door moved too.

Or even better... offer to buy the bin storage for NDN. Which is a hell of a lot cheaper than moving a door. Plus as PP stated NDN might just pop a lock on their gate... In which case OP 's mum is stuck with the problem and a NDN who'll not even discuss a happy resolution.

From your diagram I am assuming that the neighbour's still walk down the alley to get onto the street? Have you as a PP mentioned checked the deeds? Your dm may not be able to prevent the NDN storing bins there. Your dm's reasonable complaint is that the joint access is being contaminated by badly stored waste . This attracts flies and rats.

As a temporary measure I would get some Jeyes fluid or a similar disinfecting agent and dilute it into a bucket of water and throw it over the alley and bin to keep the flies down. Also contact Environmental Health at the LA regarding advice on dealing with this hazard to health.

Thanks all. Going to check DM's deeds to see if it says anything about the shared alley being used for storage, and also contact the council to complain to environmental health. It isn't acceptable for stinking bins to be right outside DM's door no matter how often they're cleaned.

Maybe you also need to check if her recess is her own property or classed as part of a shared alley. That might affect the other neighbours.

@CanaBanana but my bins don't stink and they are rarely cleaned! It really should be a non issue.

However in the recent hot weather the bin stinks and is crawling with flies so neighbour obviously wanted rid and put in the alley about 5ft from DM's door. DM now can't open her door for ventilation or while cooking because the flies and smells come in.

If the situation is so bad that your mother can not open her door because of the amount of flies or stench then you do need to call environmental health, regardless of access issues.

My bins are not crawling with flies and they are not routinely cleaned. I need to walk right close past a row of neighbours bins every day they do not have flies even in this summer heat, very occasionally they are whiffy.

Many people have their bins within 5 feet of their door. What does this woman have in her bins to cause such a hazard?

Well every summer my bins are covered with flies and alive with maggots. Truly disgusting. I am a family of 6 and both recycle and normal bins are used to the full. Bins only get emptied every two weeks so all it take is some rogue flies to get in and some sun and there off. Makes no difference if they are cleaned it not. Happens every year and if it was stuck by my front door the smell would knock you out. I live in a very nice area in London too and others have bought units to put there bins in. Might do the same