A Bucks resident said they are 'fed up' with the council after they paid £55 for garden waste collection which their neighbour received for free.

A Marlow resident who preferred to remain anonymous said they contacted Buckinghamshire Council six weeks ago after spotting that their neighbour's garden waste bin was routinely being emptied despite them not paying the necessary £55 service fee. 

"I noticed that quite a few of my neighbours get their green bins collected, as do I, but when I spoke to one person about it, they said they were not paying for the service but were used to getting their garden waste collected for free.

"I'm happy to pay the £55 each year, but if my neighbour can get their bin emptied for free, why am I paying?"

They said that after they signed up for the scheme, they received a sticker to put on their green bin that "blatantly" said only stickered bins should be collected.

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"When I found out that other people were getting the service that I was paying for free of charge, I contacted the council and told them I wasn't happy.

"Then, two weeks later, I received an email to say that the situation had been dealt with - I checked, and my neighbour's bin had been emptied again!

"It has now happened three times since I first phoned the council. This is a problem that should be very easily dealt with, all they need to do is just empty the bins that have a sticker on them!"

The resident in question lives on Seymour Park Road in Marlow, but said they believe the issue is likely to be widespread, impacting nearby areas in Marlow, as well as further afield in Buckinghamshire. 

"The only reason I became aware of this is because my neighbour told me that they aren't paying to have their green bin removed. It annoys me because £55 is no small sum! 

"The worst thing is that it feels like you aren't being listened to. I've done the decent thing by phoning them and letting them know, and they haven't done anything about it.

"I'm paying the council for a service at the end of the day and I deserve to have a voice."

Jilly Jordan, Deputy Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Environment said: “Refuse crews check that green bins are displaying the appropriate sticker to show they are subscribed to the green waste collection service, but very occasionally bins not displaying a sticker may be emptied by mistake, if left for collection.

“We would politely ask residents who have not paid for a green waste subscription not to leave green bins out on collection day to avoid this confusion. Green waste can be disposed of free of charge at any of our Household Recycling Centres.

“We will check this specific area and speak with the crews to ensure only properties that are paying for this service are having their bins emptied.”