CF Neighbour? It's a skip one...

[newbie202020]

Hi all, seeking advice to calibrate my reaction. We moved into a street 18 months ago which is very well established eg most people have lived here for 30+ years so we've been very keen to settle in a sensitive way as we renovate the probate property we bought (the previously owner had lived here for 9+ decades!).

We currently have a skip on our driveway as we are renovating our basement. A neighbour from a few doors down who I've said hello to once or twice knocked on this evening to ask if she can deposit all of the rubble/bricks/garden waste from her extensive garden works into our skip as they apparently have loads to get rid of. I was caught off guard but said that we're still using it as work is ongoing but will of course let her know if we have space once ours work have finished.

She seemed quite surprised and put out by this and I'm actually quite annoyed that she even asked! Wish I'd given her the name of the skips company we're using and although prices have gone up significantly recently, £300 for a skip is still quite competitive where we live!

Should I have been more neighbourly?

Nobody should be putting rubble in their black bin. It’s not general household waste, and could damage the dustcart machinery

No! She's cheeky AF.

@OOneMoreCookieMonster Yay, happy to help!

Some skips don't just allow any old shite to be chucked in. We have only had one once, but I remember being told only to put stuff in that was agreed. Can't remember what though!

Nope! She was rude. We were asked the same some years back and our answer was the same as yours.

OP, that dog shit needs to come out - it's hazardous waste and you could get an extra bill. Not least because what you've put in your skip will probably be sorted by hand into the various types - rubble / salvage / timber etc. And leaking dog shit bags on it will not be pleasant to deal with!

@FatherJackHackettsUnderpantsHamper Lockable skip covers are a thing. We had one at work recently during some renovations and it had a metal cover on a hinge that was secured with a padlock each night

Definitely no. Unless she wants to contribute to the cost?

I'm a bit surprised by the strong reactions on here. Where I'm from it wouldn't be considered cheeky to ask. After all, you might have space when you're finished.

When we moved into this house it was a new build so the whole street moved in at the same time. We got a skip and we were happy to let our ndn use it when we were finished.

However I think your reply was fine. If she really was put out by your refusal then that's her problem.

Ah, glad to hear that lockable skips are already A Thing - even if that means I won't make my millions myself from them now

I'm a bit surprised by the strong reactions on here. Where I'm from it wouldn't be considered cheeky to ask. After all, you might have space when you're finished.

OP's neighbour was clearly hoping to chuck her large amount of rubbish immediately, before OP had finished with it - not just asking if she could use any leftover space that there may be.

Somebody else had ordered and paid for the skip that they needed, and she was expecting to use a large proportion of it herself - free of charge - knowing that the hirer may well have to order and pay for a second skip as a direct result.

I wonder how she would have reacted if OP had asked to see the rubbish and then, if it was, say, half a skip's worth, agreed if the neighbour paid her half the skip hire cost. I'm guessing she would have thought that OP was the CF!

Every adult knows that skips aren't just brought and collected free of charge by the skip fairies, yet so many seem to see somebody else's skip as an unlimited free resource.

My only thought would be are you expecting a bit of understanding from neighbours about building noise etc.

cheeky of her not to say ‘if you’ve got space would it maybe be ok if… ’ so she’s in the wrong there but when we get skips we always text the neighbours either side if we have a bit of room - seems like a good bribe for them putting up with our reno nonsense

I would suggest asking the builders if they can cover the skip with a tarpaulin or plastic sheeting to avoid the dog poo issue.

OP, your response was fine. If she doesn't want her own skip, she can call a rubbish / clearance company and get her waste removed at a fairly low cost. The local council may also offer this service.

@FatherJackHackettsUnderpantsHamper

OP's neighbour was clearly hoping to chuck her large amount of rubbish immediately, before OP had finished with it - not just asking if she could use any leftover space that there may be.

I don't think the op said that.

@SuddenlyOld

I don't think the op said that.

OP says:

knocked on this evening to ask if she can deposit all of the rubble/bricks/garden waste from her extensive garden works into our skip as they apparently have loads to get rid of.

So she clearly wanted to throw loads of her own rubbish in their skip

Then, when OP basically said that she could use it, IF there's any spare space once they'd finished with all that they needed to throw in it, she was 'put out' at being told that.

How does that differ from what I said?