Boston: Man fined after leaving bottles at recycling point

Aug 14, 2023

A man fined for fly-tipping after he left three bottles in a bag at a recycling point said the incident has left him "upset and disappointed".

Neil Robinson received a £400 fixed penalty notice after he left the bottles at the site at Tesco in Boston.

He said the recycling bins were full and he had done the same before.

Boston Borough Council said it had a "zero tolerance" policy to fly tipping and the site had clear signs warning people to only leave items in the bins.

"The bins were full so we just, as we have done before, left the bottles in a bag next to the recycling bins and drove away," Mr Robinson said.

"Out of the blue we got this rather large £400 fine from Boston Borough Council and were absolutely gobsmacked by it."

Mr Robinson admitted having returned to the site the warning signs were clear.

"We just didn't notice them and obviously being new to the area we are not aware of the policy.

"[It has left us] very upset and disappointed and it has totally changed my attitude to recycling to be honest."

He insisted he was not a fly-tipper who had dumped a mass of waste in a ditch somewhere, but had gone, "in good faith", to a recycling point.

Boston Borough Council said it was determined to "robustly tackle environmental crimes" which residents found "abhorrent".

"The council has a zero-tolerance approach to fly-tipping including at the bring-to sites like Tesco and Asda car parks," a spokesperson said.

"All bring sites have clear signage advising of the rules."

However, Mr Robinson said they should reconsider the policy.

"Maybe consider issuing a warning initially, because if people get a fine like this they are going to think 'why should I even try to recycle I may as well just dump the rubbish'."

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