Terms & Conditions - The Garden waste subscription service

1. The Service basics 

1.1 This agreement is made between the resident ('the Subscriber') and Basildon Borough Council of The Basildon Centre, St. Martin's Square, Basildon SS14 1DL and sets out the terms and conditions under which the Subscriber may use the Council's garden waste bin collection service ('the Service'). 

1.2 The Service is only available to Basildon Borough Council domestic premises, as described as a residential property by the Local Land Property Gazetteer (LLPG). 

1.3 The payment for the Service is in advance annually and only the Subscriber who has paid their subscription in advance is eligible to receive the Service. A subscription year runs from 1st April to 31st March.  All subscriptions for the year end on the 31st March of each subscription year, whatever time of year the subscription is taken up. Subscriptions do not run on a rolling 12-month basis from the point at which they are taken out. 

1.4 Containers must be registered to only one address and presented for collection at the boundary of that address. 

1.5 The service is provided as follows:  

1.5.1 A fixed subscription price per annum for the first container for each household and any subsequent container will also be charged in line with fees and charges  

1.5.2 A subscription period operates in March of each year and will be published alongside the schedule of the Council's Fees and Charges  

1.5.3 A partial year subscription is available from October-March at a cost of 50% of the annual subscription cost.  

1.6 The service is provided weekly, except for a six week period during and following the Christmas period in which residents will be notified of this break in advance. 

1.7 The cost of the Service is determined by the Council on an annual basis. Subscribers will be informed of any change to their annual subscription prior to residents being able to re subscribe.  

1.8 A maximum of 9 containers can be subscribed to a single address in the Borough.

2. Start of the Service & bin delivery 

2.1 Subscribers will not be delivered a new garden waste green wheeled container if the property has already been issued one. Where a new container is required, the Council will provide a 240-litre green wheeled container. This may take up to 28 days to be delivered and may be from refurbished stock.

2.2 The container(S) remains the property of Basildon Borough Council. 

2.3 The Subscriber cannot supply their own container. Only containers supplied by Basildon Borough Council and clearly displaying the correct permit sticker will be emptied. 

2.4 The Council will aim to deliver a permit sticker within 10 working days from the date of receiving a new subscription request. Instructions will be included with the permit of how to add this to your container. 

2.5 The permit sticker must always remain stuck to the container. If the Subscriber removes the permit the container(S) will not be emptied, and the Subscriber may be charged for a replacement. 

3. The Service and presentation of the container(S) 

3.1 Collections will take place on a weekly basis on the Subscriber's standard refuse and recycling collection day unless informed otherwise. 

3.2 On collection day the container should be presented at the boundary of the property by 7:30am to ensure collection. The container should be returned to the Subscriber's property as soon as possible after collection. 

3.3 The container(s) shall not be presented in such a way as to cause an obstruction to pedestrians or at the kerbside of the pavement where they may cause an obstruction to road users. Where there is limited room the container(s) should be left just inside the Subscriber's property boundary. 

3.4 Failure to present the container in time for collection may result in a missed collection and the container will not be emptied until the next scheduled collection date. 

3.5 Only containers supplied by Basildon Borough Council and clearly displaying the correct annual permit sticker will be emptied. Containers displaying a damaged or defaced permit may not be collected. 

3.6 Containers displaying a permit sticker with a different address to where the container has been presented will be removed without warning. 

3.7 An assisted collection service is available for those eligible and have signed up for an assisted refuse and recycling collection, providing it is practicable to do so. 

3.8 Collections will be changed due to Bank Holidays, seasonal holidays and some unforeseen circumstances. Residents will be informed of all collection changes via the "Where I Live" function on the Council's website https://www.basildon.gov.uk/where-I-live and via the Council's mobile phone app - "Our Streets" . 

3.9 The Council reserves the right to defer or suspend the Service in exceptional circumstances (e.g. industrial action, riot, terrorist attack, war, fire, adverse weather conditions). No refunds will be payable in theses circumstances and the Council will use reasonable endeavours to collect as soon as possible. 

3.10 If the Council misses a collection when a bin has been presented correctly, the Council, on notification, will endeavour to return to empty the container within two working days. The Council will not issue refunds for missed collections. 

3.11 If the Council misses a collection and the Subscriber independently arranges for collection of the garden waste, the Council will not be liable for any third party costs, any costs incurred, or damages. 

3.12 Only loose garden waste, as listed in the current acceptance list (https://www.basildon.gov.uk/gardenwaste), may be placed in the garden waste container. The garden waste must not be placed in plastic bags or any other sort of packaging. Non-acceptable items affect the composting process and contaminates the resultant compost. 

3.13 All garden waste must be contained within the container provided with a shut lid. Overfilled container will not be collected and the Council will not issue refunds for non-collection. 

3.14 Garden waste containers contaminated with items not listed in the Council's acceptance list (https://www.basildon.gov.uk/gardenwaste), including plastic bags of any kind, will not be collected. Once the subscriber has removed the non-permitted items, the container will be emptied on the next scheduled collection and not before. 

3.15 If containers are regularly contaminated, the subscriber will be warned about the issues. If contamination issues continue the collection Service will be withdrawn from that property, without refund. 

3.16 Properties with restricted access may not be suitable to receive the Service. Upon assessment of your property, if it is deemed not suitable you will be advised of other options available, and a full refund will be issued. 

3.17 Containers too heavy for safe handling or unsafe for the lift mechanism on the collection vehicle will not be emptied. Once the subscriber has removed the excess items the container will be emptied on the next scheduled collection. 

3.18 The Council accepts no liability for any damage caused in performing the Service. 

4. Subscriber Obligations 

4.1 After collection the Subscriber must return the container(s) to the Subscriber's property at the earliest opportunity. 

4.2 The Subscriber is responsible for the safe and secure storage of the container(s) on the Subscriber's property at all times. 

4.3 The Subscriber is responsible for the general condition and cleaning of the garden waste container whilst in their possession. 

4.4 The container(s) must not be defaced, damaged or inscribed in any way. 

4.5 Damaged or stolen containers must be reported immediately and will normally be replaced without charge. The Council may take up to 10 working days to deliver a replacement container which may be from refurbished stock. 

4.6 The Council may charge for a replacement container(s) if it is deemed the damage to the container(s) is caused by incorrect storage, use or deliberate causation. 

4.7 The Council accepts no liability for injury due to improper use of the container. 

4.8 Subscribers must not use the garden container(s) for any other use, except for garden waste. They must not be used for commercial gain.

5. Renewal of Annual Subscription 

5.1 There are no automatic renewals. The Subscriber is required to action the renewal.

5.2 After renewing the Service the permit may take up to 10 working days to be delivered. 

5.3 If a new permit has not been received within 10 working days of renewal, the Council should be informed at the earliest opportunity. 

5.4 Only containers displaying the correct year's permit sticker will be emptied. Failure to attach the new year's permit to the  container will result in no collection until the correct permit is displayed. 

5.5 Subscribers will only receive collections upon renewing, once the new year's permit has been received and attached to the containers(s).

5.6 Unsubscribed container(s) may be collected from the property after 1st April and the container(s) should be made available during this time for collection. The Council will aim to collect the container(s) within 28 days of 1st April. 

6. Cooling off period/Refunds/Cancellation/Moving property 

6.1 Any changes to a subscription must be made by the payee of the service, including refunds or changes to subscription details.

6.2 The Subscriber is entitled to a refund within 14 days of subscribing to the service, should the service be cancelled and the bin returned. This is a cooling off period for Subscribers. 

6.3 Cooling off period refunds must be requested by the Subscriber and verified by the Council. The Service will aim to collect the container(s) within 10 working days. The container must be empty and accessible by the crew. Cooling off period refunds will only be issued once the container has been collected. Once collected it can take up to 10 working days for the refund to be received by the subscriber.

6.4 Failure to return the container(s) will nullify any cooling off period refund. 

6.5 The Subscriber may be charged for any damage to the container prior to a cooling off period refund being issued. 

6.6 After 14 days of subscribing, the Service can be cancelled, but no refund will be given even if the container is yet to be used. The container will still be collected from the Subscriber. The container must be empty and accessible by the crew. Refund requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis after the 14 days, if this is due to poor quality of service for example.

6.7 The Subscriber can only request the cancellation of the Service following verification of the subscription details.

6.8 In the event that the Subscriber does not use the Service for any part of the subscription year for whatever reason, including but not limited to death, being away on holiday or being away from home for whatever reason, the Subscriber will not receive a refund for that period.

6.9 The Service is non-transferable from one subscriber to another.

6.10 On moving address within the borough of Basildon the service can be transferred to the new address. The Subscriber should inform the Council of the previous and new address alongside verification of their subscription details, plus whether they require a new garden waste wheeled container. The Subscriber must leave all waste and recycling containers at their previous address and a new permit will be issued to the new address.

6.11 If moving out of the borough the Council must be informed and the container will be collected by the Council. Failure to do so may result in costs to recover the container to be charged.

6.12 No refund is offered if the subscription is cancelled due to the Subscriber moving property, unless its in the first 14 day cooling off period.

7. Subscriber data

7.1 The information provided by the Subscriber will be held and processed by Basildon Borough Council. Information provided will be shared with other Council departments. Information will be held and disposed of in line with the Council's GDPR, Document Retention and Disposal Guidance. Any information that the Council has about a subscriber can be obtained by making a request in writing by using a Subject Access Request form. The Council's policy can be viewed at: https://www.basildon.gov.uk/privacy-garden-waste

8. Other

8.1 The Council reserves the right to vary these Terms & Conditions. The Subscriber will be notified of any changes.

8.2 For anything else please go to https://basildon.gov.uk/gardenwaste