A mother was fined £500 for fly-tipping after leaving an Ikea cabinet outside of her home for neighbours to take.
Isabelle Pepin from Bournemouth left the cabinet outside to allow passing neighbours to take for free but was shocked three weeks later when a council official knocked on her door to present her with a fine that would be doubled if not paid in two weeks.
Bournemouth Council has recently changed its rules, meaning that fly-tippers can now be fined up to £1,000. Since then, 73 people have been fined, according to figures.
The 42-year-old mother thought that she was helping the community after placing an explanatory note on the cabinet which was collected soon after.
She said: “I have lived in this property for 12 years and I see people in the area leaving things out probably every other day. I love the community factor of it.
“It’s not fly-tipping, that is not what is happening here. It’s recycling things people no longer want or need.
“The guy from the council initially came when I was away and spoke with my housemate about the cabinet that was left outside for a few hours.
“My housemate just laughed because he thought it was nothing serious and so he brought it back onto the driveway and said that he would get rid of it.
“Then the guy came back and he was quite intimidating. He was wearing a chest camera and started questioning me about the cabinet.
“I said it was part of the community and had been going on for over a decade. He said it was actually fly-tipping and of course I disagreed with him.
He then told me that the maximum penalty is £50,000 and prison time. I am usually quite a confident person but by this point I was shaking and panicking.
“He didn’t show any documentation or anything in writing. He did show me an ID card but it was very basic. It was just a picture of him, his name and BCP Council.
“He said I needed to give him my name and address and I would be committing another offence if I didn’t. He then printed off a ticket, saying I had 14 days to pay £500 or it would go up to £1,000.
“It was really a horrible experience.”
Fly-tipping is defined as the “illegal dumping of liquid or solid waste on land or in water.” The waste is usually dumped to avoid disposal costs.
Jeff Hanna, a Liberal Democrat councillor for West Southbourne, said he disagreed with the council’s heavy-handed approach and was looking into the matter.
“I find it difficult to accept that this is fly-tipping, and think a £500 fine is excessive,” he said. “I have told officers that I think at most a friendly warning should have been given.”
Enforcement of fly tipping fines is carried out by a private company not council officers. Hanna has asked officers to review the company’s contract.
Cllr Kieron Wilson, the council’s portfolio holder for housing and regulatory services said that the council was “committed to tackling fly-tipping” to ensure that communities can enjoy the area they live and have pride in their neighbourhood.