First £1,000 fixed penalty notice issued in West Lindsey for fly-tipping

The fine, issued for a fly-tipping offence investigated by officers in January, is the maximum the council can hand out in these circumstances, and follows a £500 fine that was given to a different offender for deliberately dumping litter from a vehicle.

Councillors backed an increase in the fixed penalty charge for people fly-tipping in West Lindsey to £1,000 last year, at the same time littering offences were increased to £500.

The council has been able to make these increases due to the provisions made within the Government’s Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan.

Coun Jim Snee, chairman of the regulatory committee at the council, said: “At West Lindsey we remain committed to reducing fly-tipping offences across the whole district.

“Fines of this level send a clear message that illegal activity of this type is being proactively targeted by our officers.

“Every offence, big or small, is investigated and we will look to issue a fine to anyone carrying out this type of activity.

“Fly-tipping and littering are just not acceptable, you can use one of the recycling centres or contact the council to arrange removal of bulky items, which costs a lot less than the £1,000 you would face by illegally fly-tipping.”

Kim Enderby, senior licensing and community safety officer at the council said the fine demonstrated the council’s determination to stamp out fly tipping.

He said: “Our team are out and about on a daily basis across the whole district. We investigate all reports of fly tipping, patrol hot spot areas and gather intelligence which we share with partner agencies such as the police and Environment Agency. We continue to deploy our fly tip cameras at numerous locations, and we are always looking to deter or detect offences like this.”

If a member of the public witnesses a fly-tip happening or comes across abandoned waste, they should immediately report it to their council.

For more information on what West Lindsey District Council is doing to combat fly-tipping and other littering offense, visit www.west-lindsey.gov.uk.