A woman who gave her building waste to a rogue trader who then fly-tipped it on the Isle of Axholme received a fixed penalty notice after North Lincolnshire Council officers tracked her down.
The large pile of debris was reported in January after it was dumped on the Trent bank between Owston Ferry and Gunthorpe.
An officer sifted through the rubbish – which had frozen to the ground – and found details of an address in Lincoln, which he contacted.
A woman told him she had paid someone £150 to take her waste away following home improvements, but admitted she had not checked if they were legitimate.
She was reluctant to give any more details and was told she was in breach of her household waste duty of care, which means any waste generated on a householder’s property must be disposed of properly and legally.
She was issued with a fixed penalty notice of £400, which she paid in full, taking account of the £100 reduction for early payment.
Fixed penalty notices provide a means of dealing with fly-tipping enforcement without the need to present evidence in court. This means it can be resolved more quickly where people admit the offence.
However, if it would cost more to clear up the fly-tipping than the fine would recover, officers will still take a criminal prosecution of the person involved.
Residents are urged to think carefully before giving waste to people advertising online who may be a rogue trader with a van.
If people offer to take waste away for little cost, it is likely they aren’t licensed, and your rubbish could end up dumped in our rural areas.
More information about how to check if they are a registered waste carrier is available on the Gov.uk website at or on the fly-tipping section of our website.
The council also operates a network of Household Recycling Centres to enable residents to recycle any unwanted household waste.
North Lincolnshire Council is waging war on fly-tippers and litter-louts with an Environmental Protection team that has a range of powers to hand out fixed penalty notices of between £150 and £400 for anyone dropping, throwing or depositing litter, flytipping or breaching their waste duty of care.
We are also encouraging people to join us in signing up to the Great British Spring Clean, organised by Keep Britain Tidy, taking place between 18 May and 13 June 2021.
