Halstead man criticises Braintree Council over damaged bin

The lid was ripped off David Sugden's garden waste bin when heavy rain and high winds lashed the country.

It was “after dark” when Mr Sugden, 69, heard a loud bang outside his property during the storm on January 2.

Once the storm lifted, he ventured outside his home in Trinity Road, Halstead, and discovered the lid had been wrenched from the wheelie bin.

Not happy - David Sugden (Image: David Sugden)

After a temporary fix, he went on  Braintree Council’s website and was delighted to see residents could request a replacement wheelie bin for free.

But after failing to find a green waste bin option, he called the council and was told he would have to stump up £34 for a replacement.

He said: “I called Braintree Council and spoke to a very polite lady there and she explained under the new scheme, they no longer give free bins for garden waste.

“I pointed out, if you go to the main section on the website, it states this is an option.

“I was told it's £34 for a replacement and that is for the standard smaller size, when I had the larger one.

“I thought it was pretty disgusting.”

Broken - The bin that was damaged during Storm Henk (Image: David Sugden)

The council will start charging residents £55 a year extra for garden waste collections when a new system comes in on March 4.

Bosses blamed factors such as inflation, fallout from the pandemic, and the cost-of-living-crisis.

Mr Sugden had already signed up early to get a discount.

He was unhappy that being a member of the service does not include a free bin replacement.

He said: “I felt cheated because it seems like Braintree Council is trying to get more money out of house owners.

"It's bad enough we get council tax put up each year and we don’t get much out of it."

Bin - Another angle of the damaged bin (Image: David Sugden)

The council now says Mr Sugden was given the wrong information and confirmed he can order a replacement at no extra cost.

A spokesman said: “We acknowledge that a customer was misinformed on this occasion and was unsuccessful in ordering a replacement green bin on our website, and we apologise for the upset this has caused.

"We have contacted the customer and have resolved his concerns. We have also updated our website and updated our internal processes to prevent a recurrence.

"Until the new garden waste subscription service starts on March 4, repair or replacement of any damaged green bins will be provided free of charge and can be ordered from our website.

"From that date, residents who have subscribed to the new service will be responsible for their green bins and will have to pay a replacement when needed.”

Mr Sugden said he was "delighted common sense has prevailed".

"I am also pleased that anyone who finds themselves in the same situation has been given two months' grace and can use this time to apply for a new free bin,” he added.