Fly-tipping

Fly-tipping is the illegal dumping of waste or rubbish. This could be a few bags of rubbish or larger items like a fridge or mattress. Additionally, disposing of waste larger than small litter items such as a drinks can in or around litter bins is considered an offence and will be treated as fly-tipping.

• We remove waste dumped on land owned or managed by the council.
• We don't remove waste from private property.

Report fly-tipping

Don’t put yourself at risk by approaching anyone you witness illegally dumping rubbish.

Make a note of:

• the time, date and location
• registration or description of vehicle(s) involved
• description of people involved
• the type and amount of waste dumped.

You can send any phone or CCTV footage to us. Please do not share footage or images on social media as this may jeopardise any future prosecution. 

We will:

• clear fly-tipping on public land within 48 hours
• search for anything to identify who is responsible so we can take action against them.

Fly-tipping is a criminal offence.

We can issue fixed penalty notices (FPN) of up to £1,000.

The courts can impose

• fines of up to £75,000 for individuals
• fines of up to £95,000 for businesses
• prison sentences of up to five years
• the seizure of vehicles used to commit fly-tipping offences.

Can I appeal

There are no formal grounds of appeal against an FPN. If you feel there are mitigating circumstances you can make a representation in writing.

Please allow 21 days for your case to be reviewed. Your fixed penalty will be put on hold while this happens. Note that you may receive an automated reminder letter during this 21 day period.

We cannot accept a representation if you have already paid your FPN.

If you do not agree that you committed the offence, it will be for the court to decide on any penalty based on the evidence.

Brent residents can either:

• visit our Abbey Road Reuse and recycling centre
• book a special bulky items collection

Businesses can dispose of commercial waste using our business waste collection service.

Landlords who need to dispose of items like mattresses and white goods must treat these as trade waste. You can find a legal waste carrier using the Environment Agency website.

It is the landowner’s responsibility to remove rubbish from their land and do what they can to stop it happening again.

Private land can include:

• driveways
• service roads behind shops
• land near garages and surrounding blocks of flats.

We can take action against landowners who refuse to clean things up. We can issue them a legal notice which means they must clear their land by a certain date or face a fine or prosecution.