Luton fly-tipping fines soar as zero tolerance council seeks to name and shame offenders

Luton's council leader has said the town has a zero tolerance to fly-tipping after latest figures show a massive crackdown on the blight of dumped rubbish.

Just two years after setting up its fly-tipping Response Crew, the council has seen fixed penalty notices dished out to offenders rocket.

Between March 2021 and March 2022, the council carried 829 investigations, with 75 warnings and 343 fixed penalty notices being issued. By comparison, there were 179 fixed penalty notices issued between June 2020 and June 2021.

Councillor Hazel Simmons said: "Fly-tipping is not acceptable to our residents and we are tired of people leaving rubbish on our streets. These penalty notices demonstrate that we are watching and we will take action. We have a number of cases awaiting prosecution following non-payment of fixed penalty notices and also have a number of cases where an investigation is still ongoing or awaiting payment of recently issued fixed penalty notices.

“No-one has the right to dump their household waste just because they can’t be bothered to take it to one of our Tidy Tips or organise a bulky waste collection and residents on benefits can receive special collections free of charge. We want to send a clear message that we have a zero-tolerance approach to this criminal behaviour and are asking residents who follow the rules to get on board with this and help us."

Is fly-tipping an issue in your area? Email views and photos to [email protected].

The notices were issued for range of fly-tipping offences, some of which have resulted from the evidence found by the council’s Response Crew, and the Neighbourhood Enforcement Team.

The council are still appealing for help to identify offenders through the ongoing Wall of Shame campaign. The council’s social media channels have been used to share videos and images featuring some of the town’s fly-tipping hotspots since 2019, and residents are being asked to help name and shame those responsible.

Along with the request for help from the public, the fly-tipping crews find and collect the rubbish, capturing evidence which is used for onward investigation. They have been proactively visiting problem areas, which has led to a number of prosecutions.

When having a clear out, moving house or carrying out DIY, residents must take appropriate steps to ensure they give their waste to a licensed carrier. If they don’t and their rubbish is found dumped and it’s tracked back to them, they will be prosecuted or receive a fixed penalty notice. People are also being reminded that disposing of waste in the wrong place, including extra sacks of waste next to their rubbish bins is also fly-tipping and most importantly it’s a crime. The council will be watching and offenders will receive fines or prosecution if caught.

You can check if someone is authorised with your local Environment Agency office on 03708 506 506 or you can check the public register for environmental information at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/access-the-public-register-for-environmental-information.

To view the videos, images and get in touch visit the Wall of Shame page at m.luton.gov.uk/Page/Show/Community_and_living/crime-and-community-safety/keeplutontidy/Pages/Wall-of-Shame.aspx