Binmen often won't collect your rubbish if you've broken one of the rules for collection. Finding out that your wheelie bin is still full after collection day can be frustrating, especially if you live in an area that alternates between general rubbish and recycling, so you know it'll be a fortnight until that bin is up for collection again.
But what many Brits don't realise is that there are some bin collection rules that households need to follow, and if they don't, then it's very likely their rubbish won't be taken away. One woman on social media is finding this out in real time as she claims the binmen have refused to take her rubbish - and she has no idea why.
Holly Laing explained in a TikTok video that her bins alternate each week so that the general rubbish and recycling are emptied once a fortnight. She admitted that her household generates "a lot of rubbish" within those two weeks, and they're having to put surplus general waste bags in their shed because they won't fit in the wheelie bin.
The woman's household also generates a lot of recycling, so when it was time for the recycling bin to be emptied this week, Holly decided to be a bit "cheeky" by putting both of her bins outside to be collected - but insisted they both only contained recycling rubbish.
She said her recycling bin was full, and she had some bits that still needed collecting, so she emptied her general waste bin and put the leftover recycling in there, hoping that the binmen would do her a favour and take it anyway. Not only did they not empty the overflow bin, but they also didn't take the rubbish from her actual recycling bin either.
She explained: "We, with the rest of our neighbours, put our wheelie bins outside the front of our house. So I can see on our doorbell camera that they collected everyone else's wheelie bins and left ours.
"Fair enough if they don't want to take the general waste bin because it's the wrong day for that, but there was no general waste in it. And the wheelie bin lid had been flung open by the wind anyway. The other bin was too full to close the lid, so basically, they could see what was in both of our bins. And both of them, you can see that it's just cardboard.
"I wouldn't have minded so much if they only took our recycling bin, because obviously that's what today is. At least then we would have one wheelie bin empty for us to fill back up. But now we just have two bins full of cardboard because they wouldn't take either of them. I just don't understand why they wouldn't take the recycling bin when it's recycling bin day."
However, Holly actually pointed out what the likely culprit was without her realising, as she had seemingly made a big mistake that stopped her rubbish from being collected.
Most councils will have a rule that if your wheelie bin is so full that the lid cannot close properly, then the binmen will not empty your rubbish. Holly admitted in her video that the recycling bin was "too full to close the lid", which is most likely the reason why her bin wasn't emptied.
If the lid is propped open, it often means the bin cannot be safely lifted by the mechanical arms on the bin lorry, so it can be a safety issue to empty a bin that is too full. In some cases, a bin that is too full can also pose a weight limit issue. The bin lorry will have a weight limit, and if your bin is too full, it could risk exceeding the lorry's capacity.
Several people pointed out this rule in the comments of Holly's video, as they told her that was the most likely reason for her rubbish not being collected.
One person said: "I know it's super annoying, but I believe if the bin is too full to fully close the lid, the bin men can refuse to take it. Not sure what the exact reasoning is behind it, but I know they can."
Another added: "I live in Birmingham and they haven't collected recycling for about a year now. But I know normally if the bin lid is slightly open, they won't collect."
Others told Holly that she can contact her council to get a larger wheelie bin or a second one, but she would likely have to pay extra for it. Some councils also charge extra for the second bin to be collected, as it is outside of their normal routine, and they would need to account for the extra waste.
Why binmen can refuse to collect your binsThere are a number of other reasons binmen may refuse to collect your rubbish that don't have anything to do with your bin being too full or the lid being open. They can also refuse to collect if your rubbish violates council guidelines, such as containing contaminated recycling, being excessively heavy or if you include "side waste", which are bags left next to the bin.
Binmen may also refuse to collect your rubbish if you put non-recyclable items like food or soft plastics in your recycling bin, although they will often leave a sticker behind that explains the issue with your bins.
Sometimes recycling rules can vary slightly in different parts of the country. If you're unsure about anything, visit your council website for further guidance.
Ensure our latest headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search by making us a Preferred Source.Click here to activate or add us as your Preferred Source in your Google search settings.
