Summary: We have decided not to investigate Mr X’s complaint about missed recycling bin collections. The Council has upheld the complaint and agreed to remedy their injustice by taking appropriate action.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained his recycling bins were not collected for 6-8 weeks
2. Mr X complained the Council said they were not collected because they were contaminated with general waste.
3. Mr X complained the Council had not done monitoring of his recycling bin collections as they had said they would.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended
5. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
7. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

8. Mr X complained the Council missed around 33% of fortnightly recycling bin collections between February 2024 and July 2024. He told us:
• The Council said the recycling bins were not collected as they contained general waste.
• The missed collections affected Mr X and up to 47 other flats at the property.
• The Council told Mr X it would monitor the recycling bin collections from his property, but it has not done this.
• The Council has not provided Mr X or other residents at the property with guidance about how to recycle correctly.
9. If we investigated this complaint, it is likely we would find the Council at fault because the Council has missed a significant number of collections and has not provided guidance to residences about recycling or undertaken the monitoring it said it would. This caused Mr frustration and uncertainty. We therefore asked the Council to consider remedying this by taking the action set out below.

Agreed Action

10. Within 1 month of this decision
• Write and apologise to Mr X for the frustration and uncertainty caused by the missed collections.
• Provide Mr X and the other affected residents with guidance and information about how to recycle their waste.
• Monitor the collection of bins and recycling for 3 months from Mr X’s property. It will report to the Ombudsman within 1 month of the end of this monitoring period.

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Final decision

11. We have upheld this complaint because the Council has agreed to resolve the complaint early by providing a proportionate remedy for the injustice caused.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman