Issue with Artex collection by Council

[axil23]

A flat that I rent out had Artex on the walls, this contains a very minor amount of Asbestos so needs to be disposed off properly.

 

Spoke with the Local council over the phone and they advised that if I take it down myself and triple bag it, dampen it and label it they will pick it up for free.

 

So did the job myself and called it in

 

they took the order and said someone would contact me.

 

3 weeks go past and nothing.

 

Call it in again, was told its free and it should be collected within a week.

 

Get a phone call from a very rude person from the council who says its not free and they will not pick it up.

The person simply denied that I could have been misinformed on 3 of my phone calls.

 

I asked that if all calls are recorded and he confirmed they are so asked him to listen to them and get back to me.

 

Now they will not return my calls or have they contacted me.

 

What are my options?

 

Can I ask for recordings of the phone calls?

 

Are they liable to collect?

 

I am quite angry as they made me waste 3 days of my time taking it down

where as I could have just got a company to take it down and take it away.

[silverfox1961]

Hi

I think you need to email the council promptly to get them to protect the recordings. Don't bother phoning as they will not treat this as seriously as I think they should as I believe they have given wrong advice in the first place.

 

Asbestos, in all its forms are classed as hazardous and should be dealt with by professionals. Triple bagging is neither here nor there if the bags are the wrong sort and the bags need to be marked as hazardous material and disposed of at a dump that specialises in this stuff.

 

Although you damped down the walls, what protection did you have? Face mask?

 

Contact the councils environmental health department to see what they say (as I could be wrong on some aspects)

[axil23]

Can I ask them to give me the recordings?

Are they under any legal obligations as a government organization?

Will these recordings confirm that a verbal contract was established?

 

Now I am stuck with the bags and can't afford to get them picked up.

 

If they had not guided me wrong in the first place then I would have never taken the Artex off. It was easier to just plaster on top of it.

 

In regards to your other questions, I was given a government website by someone in the industry with procedures to follow which I did.

[unclebulgaria67]

They are not liable and are not under any obligation following a phone call.

 

If I were you, I would put the bags in with normal rubbish collection. If you label them that they contain old artex, it would be up to the council to test them, before they send to landfill. At your local councils waste sorting site, they will have long conveyor belt type systems to check through all the waste they collect. The bags will be sorted out as possible hazzardous waste and they will be dealt with separately.

Edited May 27, 2022 by dx100uk
unnecessary previous post quote removed

[axil23]

But if I get caught putting them in a rubbish bin can I not face a serious fine?

[unclebulgaria67]

But if I get caught putting them in a rubbish bin can I not face a serious fine?

 

I would not think so. You don't know for sure that this artex contains asbestos. Some artex does not contain it. Perhaps you have since checked pictures of artex containing asbestos online and no longer think it is hazzardous material.

 

I put all sorts of cr*p in my bin and so does everyone I know. Nobody has had any come back at all. When the bin lorry comes, they do not even check. They are in such a rush to do all their collections, that the wheelie bin contents are put straight in the back of the lorry and mixed up with all the other stuff. You would only get caught if you put your name & address on the bags, with a label saying hazzardous materials.

[axil23]

Thanks for the advice but too much paperwork is involved for me to not show where I disposed of it. So you guys are suggesting that the council is under no legal obligation even though they guided me wrong for a month over 4 different phone calls.

[f16]

If you take it to your local council dump they will dispose of it

[axil23]

My local council is refusing to accept it.

[ploddertom]

If it is from a flat that you rent out it will be classed as trade waste. It is illegal to put trade waste in with domestic, there are some Councils that employ people to sift through rubbish and there have been instances of some disposing of old paperwork being taken to Court & fined in the past.

 

If you want the phone calls from the Council and you are an individual then submit a Subject Access Request - some Councils provide this free others charge the statutory £10.

[axil23]

Even if I get the phone calls was there any contract agreed? I

 

tried calling up the council as a different person with a different address and was advised the same thing again.

That if I take it down myself they will take it away for free.

 

Even their website states that they will collect http://www.newcastle.gov.uk/environment-and-waste/rubbish-waste-and-recycling/apply-for-the-collection-of-hazardous-waste

[unclebulgaria67]

I cannot believe that so much energy is being used up on such a small issue.

 

It it is trade waste, then you have to pay the trade rate for disposing of this stuff. If it is personal waste from your own home improvements, then you can take it to the councils recycling/waste disposal site or put it in bags in your normal household waste bin. It will get sorted by the company who handle the waste and if they think it could be hazzardous, it may be put to the one side. The waste cannot be traced back to you, unless you put your details in with the waste.

[unclebulgaria67]

There is no contract. They won't collect it separate to your normal bin collection. If you want to get rid of it separate to your normal bin collection, you have to take it down to your councils recycling/waste site yourself.

 

With my local council, they will only do separate collections for big household items, e.g washing machines, sofas. They will do one collection free per year and then they charge for subsequent collections at £30 minimum ( £5 per item)

[axil23]

I know what you mean but I am just trying to be a good citizen and do the right thing by not disposing off it via the bins. Its hazardous waste which needs to be disposed off properly.

 

I have spoken with disposal site and they will not accept it. Only option is via a company who want £1500 to remove it which I can not afford. Like I said it was only due to the Councils commitments that I took it down. Else it would have been easier to skim over it.

[unclebulgaria67]

Well it is up to you then. Personally I would not want bags of this stuff around the house for long.

 

Have you looked at this.

 

https://www.gov.uk/asbestos-in-home

Edited May 27, 2022 by dx100uk
unnecessary previous post quote removed

[ploddertom]

You have to look past the first sentence as this will be classed as commercial and it says:

"Commercial properties will need to have the waste assessed and a charge will be made for its removal." - it will be classed as a commercial property because you rent it out. ASt the bottom of the page it says:

"Asbestos is not accepted at any of our Household Waste Recycling Centres".

Edited May 27, 2022 by dx100uk
unnecessary previous post quote removed

[unclebulgaria67]

http://www.newcastle.gov.uk/environment-and-waste/rubbish-waste-and-recycling/apply-for-the-collection-of-hazardous-waste

 

Is this what you mean. You have applied and they said they want £1500 to take it away ?

 

Have you had the material checked to see whether it contains asbestos ?

[axil23]

The council says they will not pick it up. Paid or unpaid. Only a private company will pick it up.

Edited May 27, 2022 by dx100uk
unnecessary previous post quote removed

[unclebulgaria67]

The council says they will not pick it up. Paid or unpaid. Only a private company will pick it up.

 

Are you 100% sure that the artex contains Asbestos ?

 

 

http://www.asbestoswatchdog.co.uk/home

[axil23]

Yes I think so. I have been advised so by a test that I got done but I have not had the report back yet despite asking them numerous times.

[unclebulgaria67]

You could take this up with your local councilllors. Some councils do accept asbestos at their recycling sites. South Tyneside council accept Abestos waste at their Middlefields Depot.

 

Perhaps to save yourself £1500, if you have a friend/relative who lives in a neighbouring council where they take asbestos waste, you can arrange with them to take it to their councils depot. A bit silly, but if sorts out this problem.

[axil23]

Interesting. Thank you. Have complained to the council lets see where that takes me.

[ericsbrother]

How old is the artex? that will determine if it could ever have had asbestos. Where did you get the test and who did it, optical examination isnt that good at differentiating between fibrous materials.

[axil23]

My guess would be 90's.

 

I got a company from the yellow pages who at first took a week and lost my sample and then when I gave them a new one said it contained a minor amount which did not need professional removal.

 

I have now been asking them for 2 weeks for the results so I know what type it is and no one answers the phone.

 

It was a one man office so either he did not carry out the test properly or just doesn't want to return my calls.

 

I have a feeling he did not carry out the tests hence why he is not providing me a report.