A BIN man who could not get his refuse removed has rubbished his treatment by Warrington Borough Council.
Christopher Acton has been a bin man in Warrington for the past 19 years and was outraged to receive an enforcement notice saying he could be fined up to £50,000 for leaving bin bags outside his home after the refuse wagon destroyed his bin - twice in one month.
The 48-year-old, who lives on Winwick Road with his wife Janet and their three adult children, said while they were waiting for a replacement bin they were forced to leave their rubbish in bin bags outside their home, which fellow bin men refused to collect.
Mr Acton said: "They knew full well we didn't have a bin. This absolutely stinks and if it's happening to me, someone who knows the whys and wherefores of refuse collection, what hope does anyone else have?"
Mrs Acton, a 45-year-old housewife, said she had put out 12 half-full bin bags on Friday to compensate for their missing 360 litre bin.
She said: "We hadn't had a bin for a fortnight. I reported it through the proper channels and nobody told me how many bags I could put out.
"The same bin men who saw our bin chewed up refused to take away our rubbish. It is crazy to think a bin man can't have his rubbish removed."
The family has now had the rubbish collected but they are still facing enforcement action.
A spokesman for the borough council described the situation as unfortunate'.
He added: "The containers were replaced within 10 days of each incident being reported, in line with the council's performance criteria.
"During this time the resident was informed that she could instead put out three normal sized refuse sacks, which would then be collected.
"The resident chose to leave 15 sacks out on two separate occasions, which resulted in her being contacted by a member of the enforcement team. This is standard procedure in all instances of potential fly tipping."
