Fly-tippers hit with £3,000 of fines plus court appearances as council issues zero tolerance message

Residents and those offering trade waste removal are being warned that fly-tipping will not be tolerated in Fenland – after fines and penalties totalling more than £3,000 were issued.

Three residents who did not heed advice on how to legally dispose of their household waste were each issued with £400 fixed penalty notices, says Fenland District Council.

Two men were taken to court after failing to pay fixed penalty notices for fly-tipping, resulting in them being ordered to pay larger sums. One of them was ordered to pay more than £1,000.

A ‘rogue trader’ who was suspected of tipping trade waste, also got a £300 fixed penalty notice.

Fenland District Council portfolio holder for refuse and cleansing, parks and open spaces Coun Peter Murphy said: “We will not tolerate fly-tipping in the district. If you do it expect to be found and fined.

“The district council provides excellent services for waste disposal. There is no excuse for dumping illegally.”

Three women also had to pay £400 fixed penalty notices each for failing to dispose of their household waste legally.

A spokesperson for the authority said: “All three were repeatedly told to use allocated bins and not leave their household waste on a street in Wisbech. Despite the residents being told the correct way to get rid of unwanted items, waste found belonging to them was dumped in an alleyway causing distress to residents. Allocated bins the waste was left next to remained unused.”

The penalty notices were issued in March this year.

A Spalding man also paid a £300 fixed penalty notice for failing to provide evidence to enforcement officers that he disposed of his trade waste legally. The council says he was suspected of involvement in a fly-tip in Treading Bank, Wisbech, which blocked a rural road in January last year.

“Persistent officers eventually tracked down the rogue trader and asked to see an audit trail of his paperwork for the last six months,” the spokesperson explained. “He was unable to provide records showing he had taken waste he was collecting as part of his business to an official waste site and was issued a fixed penalty notice.

A man who was spotted piling rubbish from a house into West Street Car Park, Wisbech, also had to pay a total of £530. He has been issued with a £400 fixed penalty notice but failed to pay and was summoned to court. When he failed to appear, a warrant was issued for his arrest. On March 19 this year, the man appeared in court and was ordered to pay a total of £530.

Another man involved in the same incident, which happened in May last year, was dealt with in court in August and ordered to pay a total of £1,010.

The spokesperson went on: “Residents and traders employing the services of a waste disposal firm are responsible for checking anyone who disposes of their waste does so legally. If your waste is found fly-tipped you can be held responsible and face a penalty or prosecution.

Fenland District Council provides compliant waste disposal services for household and trade waste. The district council’s bulky waste service can collect several larger household items from outside your home for a fixed fee. Visit: www.fenland.gov.uk/bulkywaste. Trade waste services are detailed at: www.fenland.gov.uk/tradewaste

Residents can also take household waste to a Cambridgeshire County Council recycling centre for free.

You can report fly-tipping via www.fenland.gov.uk/flytipping or call 01354 654321