Leon Wright, 40, put his rubbish out at 3.25pm – some four-and-a-half hours before the advised time – as he had no other option before he and his wife went on a cruise
A man returned from his holiday to be slapped with a nasty penalty notice.
Marketing worker Leon Wright, 40, returned from a honeymoon with new wife Amy, 34, only to be greeted by a penalty notice from Richmond Council stuck through their letterbox.
Nestled above shops in East Twickenham, South West London, the Wrights are accustomed to ditching their waste in brightly coloured sacks on the pavement below their flat.
Richmond Council rules dictate that locals should keep their refuse indoors until after 8pm the night before the bin men arrive. However, Mr Wright, who popped out his trash at 3:25pm—mere hours before jetting off for a post-nuptial getaway—deems the fine unfair, insisting necessity drove his timing.
“I only put it out a few hours before. It was the last thing I did before we left for holiday and the latest time that I could leave it out,” Leon said.
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“I came back from my honeymoon with a fixed penalty notice from Richmond council. It said that we had to pay it within ten days, but we couldn’t because we weren’t even there. It was very surprising. We had never had any problems with the council before.
“I do my best to follow the rules, but it was literally just a few hours before the collection window so I never thought they would send fines straight away.”
Leon’s pre-holiday rush saw him leave the bins out on May 27 before catching a 7.10pm flight from Heathrow, bound for an Athens-departing honeymoon cruise. Ten days on, Mr Wright and Amy came back from their jaunt to discover a parking fine slapped right on their doorstep.
Mr Wright insists the charge goes against government guidelines and says even after he highlighted this, the council has “refused” to scrap it. “It says in black and white on the GOV.uk website that you can’t issue penalties for leaving bins out a few hours early, which is exactly what they have done,” Leon added.
“They weren’t in the middle of the walkway or obstructing anyone. This is just a blatant cash grab to me. I am not paying it. This kind of thing just can’t happen. It is absolutely wrong. I will take them to court if it comes to that.”
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The notice sent to him specifically mentions the offence under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 Section 87. In a move seen as little consolation, the council offered to prolong the deadline for settling the fine to August 19, tempting Leon with a reduced fee of £100.
Leon is holding firm on not paying a single penny. “It is definitely not what you want to see when you come back from holiday. Especially when you are trying to do your best. My neighbours couldn’t believe it. They were all shocked,” he said.
A spokesperson for Richmond Council saidL “Richmond Council is committed to keeping the borough’s streets clean, safe, and accessible for everyone. To help achieve this, we encourage residents to follow the guidance on when to put waste out for collection.
“Waste should only be placed out between 8pm the night before and 6am on the day of collection. When these rules are not followed, enforcement action may be taken where appropriate. We understand that residents can sometimes make genuine mistakes, which is why there is a clear appeals process in place. While we don’t comment on individual cases, any new information submitted through this process will be carefully considered.”