NEWSROOM

The incident took place on 18 January at around midday, when the electrical appliance was dumped on public land, an offence that carries a fine of up to £1,000.

Following an appeal via Telford & Wrekin Watch, the individual responsible contacted the Council and accepted full liability for the offence.

As a result, the perpetrator was issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) for fly-tipping and has since paid the early‑payment penalty of £650, bringing the case to a close.

Fly-tipping is a criminal offence, and householders have a legal Duty of Care to ensure that any waste they dispose of is handled correctly and passed only to authorised carriers. Failure to do so can result in fines, enforcement action, or prosecution.

Councillor Richard Overton, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Highways, Housing and Enforcement said: “Fly-tipping is completely unacceptable and blights our communities, which is why we take a zero‑tolerance approach to this environmental crime.

“We recognise that changes to access arrangements at recycling facilities can raise concerns, particularly where residents are accustomed to using sites beyond their local area. However, let me be absolutely clear: no change to waste site access ever justifies fly-tipping.

“Telford & Wrekin residents continue to have access to a range of legal, convenient and affordable options to dispose of their waste properly, including our household recycling centres, bulky waste collections.

“We make it as easy as possible to report fly-tipping and we investigate every report we receive. Where waste is dumped on Council‑owned land, we will act quickly to remove it and pursue enforcement action. Where fly‑tipping occurs on private land, the legal responsibility for clearance rests with the landowner, although we will still investigate and take action against those responsible wherever evidence allows.

“Alongside enforcement action, we work closely with partners, neighbouring authorities, local communities and landowners to prevent incidents before they happen.

“The early reduction in fly‑tipping incidents we are seeing this year is encouraging, but we will not be complacent. We will continue to invest in prevention, intelligence‑led enforcement and community engagement to ensure that our communities do not pay the price for irresponsible behaviour.

“Anyone who chooses to dump waste illegally, for whatever reason, should expect robust action to be taken against them.”

The Council would like to remind residents that there are legal and straightforward ways to dispose of large electrical items, including:

• Use your household waste and recycling collections as scheduled.
• Take larger items or excess waste to the Council’s Household Recycling Centres at Hortonwood and Halesfield, open daily 9am–5pm (except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day).
• Arrange a bulky waste collection through the Council if you have large household items to dispose of.
• Report fly‑tipping confidentially online at www.telford.gov.uk/flytipping or by calling the confidential hotline on 01952 388 800.

Residents should be aware that using unlicensed waste carriers can lead to waste being fly-tipped, and if it can be traced back, enforcement action may still be taken against the household.

This case reinforces the Council’s zero‑tolerance approach to environmental crime and demonstrates that appeals for information are effective in holding offenders to account.

Editorial credit: Illustrative. Dartrey / Shutterstock.com'