To want to sue the council

[piscis]

I will try to make this as brief as I can...

We bought a new beautiful house and got the keys on the 6th July.
My partner talked to the council (Sutton) in advance to organize our waste collection as we were the first ones moving into the development. We are told the waste bins take a few weeks to get but
we are told the first collection for us will be on the 16th anyway(long time...), to just leave the bags outside. That day, I heard a waste collection truck stopping in the houses nearby and to my horror it doesn't come to our house, I was desperate to have our rubbish taken (we obviously couldn't wait another week!!), so go outside running after the truck. I couldn't catch that one but I find another one and ask the guys to collect our rubbish. They say that's not part of their route but they agree to pick it up this time as a favour.
After this, more calls and emails to the council to complain and say if this is going to be sorted and if they will will be picking it up next time, they say yes, of course. It comes this Monday and guess what, rubbish doesn't get picked up, we put it back in the garden for the night, talk to the council again, they say there was a problem but it will be picked up the day after...same thing, nothing! by today our rubbish has worms!! We've got a one year old baby and nappies to dispose of too. This is getting outrageous. I am FUMING, this is spoiling the experience of moving to our new house. What are we supposed to do now?? The council are worthless, whatever they say we cannnot trust obviously.
Is there a way to organize a private waste collection service?
Where can we complain formally? I have sent them messages on social media to shame them, I will be making a complaint to the Ombudsman? Local councillor? AIBU to be thinking about suing them? they are being negligent, this is a health and safety issue, and we've got a 1 year old baby!!! AIBU to think this is outrageous and more in this heat??
I don't know what else I can do...

There are private services for nappies, recycling and general waste. Nappy service round here is a special collection every 4 weeks for around £15.

Take it to the tip, and start the council's formal complaints procedure. Your local councillor may be able to assist.

It's a bummer, but there are often issues with waste collection on new developments. Now that waste collection is done by contractors, the routes are arranged at the start of the contract and it takes time for the info about new developments being occupied to filter through to the contractors and for them to get new addresses added to the rounds.

We had this when we moved into a new build. It takes time for everything to fall into place. In the meantime twice a week we just popped our bags of rubbish and recycling to the top. We found we had to do tip runs to get rid of boxes and packaging for new furniture etc.
The council aren’t involved in the sale and completion of properties so need a chance to implement collections etc when they are informed you have moved.

You can't sue them

You are well within your right to complain but you would have no case to sue them..

Sue on what grounds?

But yanbu to be annoyed, that's unacceptable.

Do you not have a dump near you that you could take your rubbish to? You are been totally unreasonable by wanting to sue he council, you haven’t stayed there that long. We had a strike recently and our rubbish wasn’t picked up for 5 weeks, it was a pain but we just dealt with it ourselves.

Just sort out the most pressing problem and take it to the tip.
Deal with the council second - they have a complaints process so use it.

Suing them is a bit OTT, so I'll just assume you are hot and othered. It's a missed bin collection not the fall of Rome.

Now that waste collection is done by contractors, the routes are arranged at the start of the contract and it takes time for the info about new developments being occupied to filter through to the contractors and for them to get new addresses added to the rounds.
This ^^. It's probably the ineptitude of the contractor. Go to the tip.

Go to the top you lazy guys

*tip

You can't sue the council for not collecting rubbish.

We learned this after our bins weren't collected for over 9 weeks last year.

Secret is to get your council to organise a massive sporting event using hundreds of miles of your roads, and then just before it starts, dump your rubbish on the route.

Worked in Birmingham last year.

Speak to your local MP and your council, they will be able to apply pressure on your behalf.

On what grounds would you sue them?

Presumably you would sue on the basis that you are paying council tax, which explicitly covers waste collection, but that the service has not been provided. To succeed, I think you would need failure to collect to be much longer than a fortnight, but YANBU to expect the contracted service to be provided.

Suing the council = suing council tax payers.

I'm not sure what you'd be suing them for...one missed collection, which in these parts costs about £2.

I understand your frustration, and there are lots of them when you move into a new build, but it's just one of those things I'm afraid. Every time they kiss a collection, contact them again. Took a fair few weeks before they started collecting our nappy waste when they were supposed to.

No idea about private refuse collection, but presumably it's easier and cheaper to just go to the tip.

We do not have a car, we cannot take the rubbish ourselves. I wish it was so easy.

Also, all the houses around us are terraced houses, I cannot put my rubbish in someone else's bins. The problem also is that we do not have bins, because it takes several weeks to get them.

"For the council to be considered to have acted in a negligent fashion, they must have ignored or failed to deal with a particular health and safety standard"

There is a problem when we are being told "yes, leave the rubbish outside tomorrow, it will be picked up" and it isn't and like that for a few days in a row.

Sutton are renowned for poor rubiish collection - they changed heir service last year and people were left without collections for weeks.

The best thing is to speak to your local councillor - you will find details on the Council website - and get them to fight your corner.

Also start the complaints procedure - again there will be details on the website. You can only go to the Ombudsman if that response is unsatisfactory.

Oh and ring daily.

Bring it round to the council offices.

Every year we get a list of what council tax is paying for. It should be easy to work out how much you've paid for refuse collection. Invite them to refund that amount.

Not just new build bins. My neighbour has paid the council for a new bin as hers was stolen. Has had to resort to using ours because it has been several weeks and still not arrived.

Take it to the council offices and tell them you are still waiting for your bins, and leave it there for them to dispose of. Or, probably better, take it to the dump and tell them you want a reduction on the council tax for every missed collection. They would be chasing you if you were late paying it.

Bring it round to the council offices

First world issue...

What are your losses? That’s the reason for suing anyone. You are annoyed, rightly, but have no financial loss.

Complain to your councillor, MP and CEO of the council. Be loud and persistent. Get everything in writing. Don’t get too het up, it will be resolved.