1000 flytipping incidents reported each year in Cotswolds
Cotswold District Council is cracking down on flytipping
The Cotswolds is an area of outstanding natural beauty famous the world over – but rogue traders are blighting the countryside with more than 1,000 flytips each year.
A campaign has been launched this summer to crack down on the crime.
And residents are encouraged to double check who they hire to take their waste away.
Kev Lea, who is Cotswold District Council’s enviro-crimes programme officer, has offered advice on how people can avoid being hit with a £600 fine by carrying out some basic checks.
He said: “When residents ask these waste carriers, these people in white vans, do they have a licence?
“Residents should ask if they can see it and what the number is and ask if it is an upper tier licence.
“The upper tier license is required when you are taking away other people’s waste such as a man in the van service, a house clearance, or a skip.
“A reputable waste carrier is going to give customers a transfer note which says what they have taken away. They are going to list it down.”
He says the waste would then be handed over at household recycling centres and the note would be handed over.
“The system is pretty fool proof, it works. But these rogues don’t want to know about waste transfer notes or receipts.
“Make sure you get a receipt if nothing else.
“People find these people on social media and they claim to offer them a good deal.
“So when the white van or Ford Transit turns up, make a note of the registration number, if nothing else.”
Residents should always ask to see an upper tier waste carrier licence and note their business name and address, telephone number, vehicle registration, waste carrier licence number, where the waste will be taken.
The authority comes across a lot of waste which is flytipped in the district which comes from neighbouring areas such as Cheltenham, Warwickshire, Oxfordshire, Swindon and South Gloucestershire.
And Mr Lea said the council is also doing stop and searches with the police and other agencies across the district to check if contractors have a waste licence.
He said flytipping costs the taxpayer in the Cotswolds thousands of pounds each year.
“Over the last few years there has been an average of between 1,000 and 1,100 flight tips each year,” he said.
If a rogue trader you hired fly-tips your waste and you didn’t do the proper checks, you’re still liable.
Fixed penalty notices of up to £600 can be issued by the council if residents fail to fulfil their duty of care.
Visit cotswold.gov.uk/flytipping for more information on people’s responsibilities and how to report fly-tipping.