AIBU to think clothing donation bins just encourage fly-tipping?

[Notyouthful]

As a litter womble, I want to say that there is no need for clothing donations bins. They just create fly tipping,

Also I doubt that any of the items in the bins are suitable for sale in charity shops.

Anyone who dumps bags and other crap by these bins are fly tipping!

There have been bins removed from areas near to me and the fly tipping has gone overnight.

Take your donations which are still suitable to wear to a charity shops.

Also don’t put out bags which you get posted for clothing donations. As people with drugs or alcohol issues, have driven around the area and picking up the bags. Or the charities are bogus. As found these with company numbers and looking at them on Companies House - they are for car mechanics the other side of the Uk

If you have issues taking stuff to a charity shop, get a friend or someone who drives. Or search for charities that will pick up donations

Thanks for all of your advice, but respectfully, you can jog on with your ideas.

The people who operate the bins will know whether or not they're a viable method of collection. If they're losing money, they'll stop.

You can complain separately to the company or council if overflow donations are an issue.

In the meantime, I will freely use my local donation banks, charities, food banks and postal collections or doorstep bags as I see fit to my circumstances. And frankly, the fact that I can drop en route to nursery rather than trawling to the high street to have "we're not accepting menswear in size medium" snapped at me if I so much as wander towards the till at a charity is a plus that can't be bought.

But please don’t dump bags when the bins are full. Your donations will be scoured by people wanting to sell clothes for fast cash or get urinated/poo on by foxes etc

I give good quality clothes to charity shops. Poor quality/stained clothing goes in the donation bins because the fabric is recycled. The only alternative is to put it in landfill 🤷🏻‍♀️

Around here charities either don't accept clothes at the moment or only accept a small bag. I've recently dumped a huge amount of unworn and still tagged clothes in charity bins. I can only hope it gets used properly!

Well duh, of course I don't do that.

YANBU. They always look a complete riot whenever I see them. I reckon some people (passers-by) try to pull the clothing out and just discard what they don’t want. Either that or more clothing gets dumped than can fit in the bin.

stop buying cheap clothes in the first place

She didn’t say that though did she and from her response I bet she doesn’t, very rude to assume and make that comment. Do you work in the charity sector at all? I do. Those bins are a godsend in terms of enabling accessible donations. Maybe people in your area just don’t use them properly?

I put bags of clothes out in the bags that come through the doors. I don't really care where any money goes (if some does end up benefiting a charity then that's a bonus), just pleased if they can be made use of in any way. And I don't really want to drive to town and pay for parking every few weeks. But I have seen the people driving around to collect them and they don't look like they're drunk or on drugs.

Not the point of the thread but can I ask if anyone knows if they stuff in the bins actually gets sold on or does it just get destroyed and used as recycled fabric? I do use the bins and often put nearly new clothes and certainly very good quality clothes in there but am never sure if they get sold on (which they should) or just used as recycled cloth (in which case I’ll stop doing it). It is never clear to me on the bin itself

I agree on the encouraging fly tipping though - our very local bins have been removed for just this reason,

Yes I tend to agree

This. @Notyouthful Don't you understand what the bins are for?

This isn't the case with all of them. There are two near me and one of them says to only give clothes in a reusable condition, no stained items, no other fabrics. Not sure about the other one.

That said, I've not seen any fly tipping near either of them, and it's a lot easier to donate than going to a charity shop with limited opening hours.

so I think your thread is "please don't flytip" not "I know the only acceptable way to donate clothes, so as I tell you"

exactly. most people just want the clothes to not go to landfill. whether you're taking them and selling them on a market for cash, sending them abroad, selling them on behalf of a charity or putting them on yourself / you kids, I don't care so long as you take them away and use them!

by this logic, charity shops encourage fly tipping

our local always has bags of crap dumped outside on a sunday

I take mine to the clothes section at the dump

On the most basic level the fact that they are often full suggests there is a need for them.

The ones round us are always full of very nearly full. As a PP has said the fact they are full suggests a need for them.

A lot of people work long hours or have very busy lives making toddling down to the charity shop on a Monday afternoon between 1 and 4 when someone who is able to screen and accept the donations is in is not feasible (yes, this is a thing in my town - you can only donate to certain charity shops when certain staff are in). These bins are open 24 hrs a day 7 days a week making donating accessable for many people. Perhaps instead it should be on the charities who use this method of donation to ensure they are emptied frequently enough to ensure there is no over spill.

We have 1 rag bin and another bin that is for clothes in good condition only.

A lot of people do not want to see clothes and textiles just go to landfill. Much better if they can be re used in some kind.

I like them only because we have one just a few minute walk away. I've only used it two times in two years but it is convenient when need to get rid of kids clothes that no longer fit.

I love the charity collection bags that come through the door. So convenient! I recently filled three black bags with clothes, alongside the bag that came through the door, and someone came and took them all away.

There are lots of charity shops near me, but I'm at work during their weekly opening hours, and my weekends are busy with housework/parenting/looking after my elderly parents/looking after DH's elderly parents. So I'll use the bags - and the donation bins if needed!

Came here to say this. I just walked past a local one, and there were several bags outside.... just under a sign asking people not to leave stuff there.

Someone in an estate in the town where I live put up CCTV footage of the person picking up their neighbours bag of donations. The car was a clapped out P reg Fiesta and the person picking up the bag looked rough.

That wasn't a charity picking that up. More of someone getting bags to sell clothes on for drugs money

Well I'd rather someone took my bags of old clothes than broke into my house.

What kind of car is someone working/volunteering for a charity supposed to drive?