They went through my skip!

[IncognitoUsername]

Is this a thing? We have a skip outside as we have been doing some decorating/clearing out. I heard a van outside the house which seemed to have stopped so I looked out and two blokes were rummaging in the skip! I went downstairs to ask what they were doing but they had just left. I noticed some metal items had gone out of the skip.
Is this normal? Do people just drive round looking for skips to have a nose in? I’m not bothered by them taking stuff out but surely it would have been polite to ask?!

Reading some of this stuff is like being back at school with the 'cool girl' bitches.

Totally normal. We normally leave the metal items next to the skip to save the skip dippers emptying the skip out.

In my area I think they sniff the scent of scrap metal on the breeze. It never hangs around for more than 24 hours.

😅 glad I'm not the only one.... the last thing I want is to also meet them beforehand

Yes this happens all the time. They are usually looking for scrap metal. Tbh I'd rather people just take my junk away than accost me on my doorstep to ask to take my junk away. I don't like answering the door to strangers.

Ours have updated the cart -much bigger wheels but still have that traditional look.

Yes it's a thing. It's fine. Why should they ask if it's on the road as most skips are? You sound like my Mum. She threw out the hideous brothel type lampshades a previous owner left , but was miffed the dustbin men didnt "ask permission" to take them from the cardboard box sged put them in by the bin.

Great analogy! I do think they can catch a whiff of copper and lead on the breeze.
Our plumber when updating an ancient heating system took the copper and lead with him - he was very careful to put it straight in his van, and didn't leave it lying about for anyone else to take.

We had an extension built a few years ago and we probably had 15 skips over the building work. The skips were checked daily by multiple skip divers even though most of them were full of rubble from the foundations.
The Cheekiest fucker was someone trying to nick all my brand new radiators that were just delivered. The builder had to chase him off.

Totally normal way to furnish a home, especially when just starting out! Back in the days before cheap tacky superstores, you'd get battered but solid quality furniture from a skip or left out on the pavement. In fact, it was good form to tarp them, so usable things didn't get ruined in bad weather (Scotland). A tip sighting was an exciting thing, worthy of detour, inspection and passing around the grapevine.

I admit I'm not so keen on the modern commodification and people scavenging for profit, but hey ho.

Other people dumping their stuff in your tip, now that is an AIBU rant!

When DH was an electrician he once left a reel of cable on a wall while carrying stuff into a house he was working on. Only left it for a few moments. Got back to his van to carry the rest of the stuff in and it was gone!

Never made that mistake again.

😂😂😂😂

My DP passed a chap filling a skip with bricks from a victorian house, asked if we could have them, now have a lovely brick patio.

Yup, had this when clearing my late mum's flat. I pointedly suggested they should have asked first. They looked at me a bit funny but then apologised. I didn't begrudge the stuff, but manners!

I know someone whose first house was partly furnished from skips. And I know another someone who has furniture in her flat that was left out for the bin men...

Much better than it going to landfill.

Absolutely this

This makes me think of king Gary and the skip episode. Someone puts their old windows in his skip. I know it's only TV but I had to switch it off. It wound me up. I was really fucking angry about those windows. Anyhow, don't see a problem with taking items out.

Very normal here. It's brilliant as we can get so much more in the skip.

Where I live we just put things outside the house and the scrap metal men just take them. Our old washing machine lasted half an hour outside the other week. It would have cost £30 for the council to come and remove it.

We had this recently. Our skip was on our drive and we had a knock at the door asking if they could take any metal items. I said fill your boots and at least they asked!

Totally normal - I don’t mind when they know and ask first. It may be in a skip, but if the skip is on your drive they’re trespassing and it’s theft. P*sses me off when they just take it as we have had contractors who recycle metal stuff themselves for charity.

Not if I keep it on my private property. I can do what I like on land I legally own and people coming onto my property to take something that doesn’t belong to them is technically theft wherever it’s left. No different to someone coming into my garden and stealing anything else I leave outside.

Skips are used for all sorts of reasons, in this case to contain some materials I didn’t want to leave spread over my garden. Just because some people think it’s OK to help themselves doesn’t mean it is, however much they try to justify it.

Scrap dealers get up very early & have eyes like hawks, know all the prime areas & have an innate feeling for where it will be like hunter gatherers. They'll take old batteries, wiring (strip it for the copper), oil drums, rusty metal.

People taking stuff aside... skips are used for house clearances. My dp did house clearances once upon a time. Without going into too many gory details, you would not want anything you put in a skip back in your house without seriously cleaning it.

They are making use of your waste. You've thrown it away. I don't think they should have to come ask you if they can please have your refuse.

Well i do what my family have always done when getting a skip in for any reason.
A massive cardboard sign duck tapped facing to the road saying.
WANT IT LIKE IT NEED IT PLEASE TAKE IT DONT MAKE A MESS THANK YOU.