Newlyweds fined £150 by council for putting the bins out early to go on their honeymoon have had fine scrapped
Leon Wright, 40, and his wife Amy, 34, returned home from their Athens cruise to find an enforcement notice had been posted through the letterbox of their flat in Twickenham, southwest London.
Their property falls under the jurisdiction of Richmond Council, who say residents should leave their bins on the pavement in colour-coded bags from 8pm the night before collection.
Mr Wright admits he put his rubbish out at 3:25pm - some four-and-a-half hours before the advised time - but says the fine was unjust as he had to leave for Heathrow Airport and had no other option.
The marketing manager decided to challenge the fine, and his efforts have ultimately proved successful, as Richmond Council has now cancelled the notice.
'It's such a relief to have the fine cancelled,' Mr Wright said.
'I only put [the bins] out a few hours before and it was the last thing I did before we left for holiday.
'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.'
He added that it was 'very surprising' to receive the fine as the couple 'had never had any problems with the council before'.
Mr Wright continued: 'It's definitely not what you want to see when you come back from holiday. Especially when you are trying to do your best.
'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.
'My neighbours couldn't believe it. They were all shocked.'
Mr Wright says the fine was issued by WISE (Waste Investigations, Support and Enforcement), who are partnered with Richmond Council as a third-party enforcement agency.
Initially, he carried out all communications through them - but was consistently told the fine would be 'upheld'.
This was despite Mr Wright finding guidance that stated residents should only be fined if bins were put out before 2pm.
Eventually, he contacted Richmond Council directly, who agreed he should not have been fined and cancelled the notice.
Mr Wright said: 'WISE weren't listening to any of my complaints or legal arguments. They just stonewalled me and said the fine was upheld.
'So I complained directly through Richmond Council who said their policy means that if someone has put their bins out after 2pm they cannot be fined.
'If it had been before that, the fine would have been upheld. But it wasn't so they cancelled it.'
Mr Wright put his bins out on May 27 before leaving to get a 7:10pm flight from Heathrow Airport for his honeymoon cruise from Athens.
Ten days later, he and Amy returned from the trip to find the fine on their doorstep.
Richmond Council said: 'We are committed to ensuring the borough's streets are kept clean.
'If it is discovered that there has been a littering offence, we may take enforcement action where appropriate.
'Residents can request a review of issued fines if they feel they have been fined unfairly or incorrectly.'
Previously, a spokesperson confirmed that waste should only be put out between 8pm the night before and 6am on the day of collection.
They added that enforcement action 'may be taken' when these rules are not followed.
WISE have been contacted for comment.
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