Littering fines in west London borough jump to 250 in crackdown

"The changes follow a series of hikes agreed by the council's Cabinet last year, which was the first time the charges had been raised since December 2017. At that meeting Conservative councillor Adronie Alford told the Labour Cabinet members while she had no problem with the increases per se she was concerned about residents receiving FPNs due to rubbish being left by refuse collectors."

"I don't really want to get a fixed penalty, and I don't really want any of my residents to get a fixed penalty because of something that hasn't been caused by a resident but has regretfully been caused by the failure of our operatives, she said. Cllr Stephen Cowan, Leader of the Council, said he had also previously been frustrated by waste left by collectors though that performance had improved under the contract with Veolia."

"The latest amendments, which have been agreed by the Cabinet member for Social Inclusion and Community Safety, Cllr Rebecca Harvey, list several offences for which the FPNs have been increased. Littering is going up from 150 to 250, or 200 if paid early Graffiti and flyposting is going from 100 to 500, or 250 if paid early Household Duty of Care breaches going from 400, with an early repayment amount of 250, to 600 or 300 if paid early Commercial waste receptacle breaches going from 110 to 150"

Hammersmith and Fulham council will increase several Fixed Penalty Notices from November 1, raising littering fines to £250 (£200 if paid early) and upping graffiti and flyposting penalties to £500 (£250 early). Household Duty of Care breaches will rise to £600 (£300 early) and commercial waste receptacle breaches to £150. The council reviewed fly-tipping and limited its FPN application to rubbish dumped in public spaces outside regular household collections, including bulky items like mattresses. Councillors expressed concern that residents might wrongly receive penalties for refuse collectors' failures, while leaders reported improved collection performance under Veolia.

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