Student charged £400 for putting rubbish next to her bin

A student who left two cardboard boxes next to a bin has been fined £400 for fly-tipping by Stoke-on-Trent council.

Marta Stankiewicz, who is currently studying at Keele University, called the penalty ‘extreme’ after she left the cardboard next to her bin on the Friday before her Monday collection, claiming there was no room in the bin.

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The environmental science student told Stoke Sentinel: “I was cleaning out the shed and there were these two cardboard boxes. They weren’t big. I put them by the wall outside by the rear of the property.

“There wasn’t any room for them in the bins so I just put them next to the bins. This was on the Friday and the bins usually get collected on a Monday. On the Saturday, someone called saying they had reported the rubbish.”

“On the same day, I got a letter from the council saying I had been fly-tipping and I was being fined £400,” Stankiewicz, who lives alone, continued.

“The boxes were just placed next to the wall by the gate out in the back alleyway. I was about to dispose of them. For two cardboard boxes, it seems extreme.”

The student branded the punishment 'excessive' and admitted that she’s too 'scared' to answer her phone, claiming the 'fine is really out of proportion'.

She shared: “I understand dumping waste is a problem. If it was a sofa or a cupboard I would understand. But it was just two cardboard boxes. I had just put them next to the bin ready to collect. I just want to know why the penalty was so high.

“Why don’t they treat every case individually and adjust the fine.”

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Stankiewicz, who hails from Tunstall, now faces having to go to court if she refuses to pay the £400 fine.

Yet the local council has refused to budge and explained that fly-tipping penalties are set by the government.

Councillor Amjid Wazir, cabinet member for the environment and enforcement, said: “Stoke-on-Trent City Council is taking a zero-tolerance approach to all fly-tipping cases.

“Residents are reminded to only present rubbish for collection on the morning of their collection day.

“Any rubbish left out and not at the collection point will be treated as fly-tipping and the perpetrator will be fined. In this case, the cardboard boxes could have been presented with the recycling collection and included in the appropriate bin.”