Barnet Council and the Environment Agency crush flytipper’s truck

Barnet Council and the Environment Agency have crushed a Ford Transit tipper truck that was used by flytippers to dump huge amounts of rubbish in the otherwise idyllic suburban village of Totteridge.

The mountain of trash was discovered on private land. The vehicle used in the flytipping was seized by the Environment Agency on Thursday 8 August after a multi-agency operation that included the Met Police and Barnet Council.

The land-owner was left to foot the bill to clear the rubbish that the flytippers had left behind.

Councillor Roberto Weeden-Sanz, Chair of the Safer Communities Partnership Board, said: “We have a zero-tolerance approach to those who deliberately flytip for their own profit or convenience. The people who did this deliberately flouted the law, at the expense of our borough, for their own personal gain. They have no consideration for our residents and the negative impact it has on our community. There is no place for it in Barnet. We will work with our partners to track them down and see that they face justice. We’d like to thank the residents who helped us along the way to begin this process.

“We have a dedicated team of Environment Enforcement Officers patrolling well-known littering and flytipping hotspots in our borough, and we will take action against those responsible. We are also using our CCTV to capture offenders. These images will be used to name and shame those flytipping in our borough.”

Residents and businesses shouldn’t just take a rubbish collector’s word for it that they are operating legally, even if they appear to be a legitimate building or skip company. If a resident or business does do this, then they too could find themselves culpable for a £400 Fixed Penalty Notice or face prosecution under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 for which there is an unlimited fine and possible imprisonment.

Anyone who pays someone else to dispose of their rubbish is required by law to check that they have a waste carrier’s licence. This information can be found through a quick search at: https://environment.data.gov.uk/public-register/view/search-waste-carriers-brokers

Last year, Finchley business Crazy Discounts was ordered to pay nearly £10,000 in fines and costs after a successful prosecution by Barnet Council. The firm – based in 17 Woodhouse Road – pleaded guilty to five offences of flytipping in nearby Lambert Way, Finchley, at Willesden Magistrates Court on Tuesday 4 September, 2018. It was ordered to pay a £5,000 fine, £2,514 in costs, £2,000 in compensation and a £100 victim surcharge.

To report flytipping, visit www.barnet.gov.uk/flytipping or phone Barnet Council on 020 8359 4600 during office hours. If you see flytipping taking place, make a note of the vehicle registration number and the date and time of the incident and report it to the council.