Stoke-on-Trent couple fined £1,200 after clearing up rubbish

A couple who cleared up rubbish on their street and left it in a box for bin collectors have been fined £1,200.

Veronika Mike and Zoltan Pinter, from Stoke-on-Trent, said their road had been blighted with “disgusting” litter for years.

But after Mr Pinter cleaned up some of the rubbish and left it out in a cardboard box, the pair each received £600 fines.

The city council said all fly-tippers would be punished with fixed penalty notices and considered the matter resolved.

Ms Mike, 41, said people would often dump waste around the bins on their street which she claimed would not get collected and would attract animals.

“I’m actually afraid to walk past it in the street because I’ve seen a lot of rats and what looks like stray cats,” she said.

Mr Pinter, 46, collected the rubbish into the box, which had his name printed on it, on 29 April after seeing the litter blowing around.

He said the bins on the street were full so he had to leave the box next to them in the hope it would be collected.

In the letter informing the pair of the fines dated 8 May, the council said they had failed “to transfer household waste to an authorised authority”.

“We just wanted to clean our street and that’s the thanks we get from the council,” Ms Mike said.

“At first I was very angry and I cried.”

Mr Pinter paid the fine immediately while Ms Mike is paying it off in monthly instalments of £100.

The couple tried to appeal the council’s decision and said they contacted the charity Citizens Advice but were told the law was “black and white”.

An online fundraiser was launched to help them cover the costs while neighbours also signed a letter to the council.

After their experience, the couple said they would never clean their street again.

“Even if the rats come, we are too afraid to do anything now,” Ms Mike said.

City councillor Amjid Wazir said the authority considered the matter resolved.

“We remind residents and businesses that fly-tipping is an offence and all perpetrators will be met with a fixed penalty notice,” he said.