Friday 19 September 2008
The Talibin will only lift 2 fingers,
A COUNCIL is refusing to empty wheelie bins if dustmen cannot pull them with just TWO fingers,
The unofficial health and safety policy is designed to protect staff from heavy bins falling off lorries.
Katie Shergold fell foul of it when she left a green wheelie bin containing only grass cuttings outside her home.
She was amazed to see a burly binman tip it back to judge its weight, slap a “heavy” sticker on it and leave it unemptied.
The Talibin ... UK threat ,
When she complained to her council she was stunned to learn men are permitted to leave bins if they don’t pass the “two finger” test.
Healthcare assistant Katie, 26, of Warminster, Wilts, said: “They told me it was normal for binmen to leave bins they couldn’t pull with two fingers.
“These were big men and the bin was only 6ft from their lorry but they just left it there. It’s ridiculous.”
Petite Katie, who is 5ft 4in, had no trouble wheeling the bin round to the front of the house herself and putting it out on the pavement.
She ended up emptying the grass clippings into bin liners and driving them to a local tip.
Katie, whose hubby Leigh, 31, is a builder, added: “I work really hard but have to pay £130 a month in council tax. We are charged for this service without getting anything in return.”
West Wiltshire District Council denied an official two-fingers policy but admitted it was used as a way of determining weight.
It said heavy bins could break the trucks’ hydraulic lifting system or topple off.
Spokesman Nicole Smith said: “If a bin is considered by the operatives to be overloaded the resident will have to remove some contents.”
Doretta Cocks, of the Campaign for Weekly Collections, said: “It’s another example of a council introducing a crazy health and safety policy without considering the health and safety of residents who must move bins themselves.”
This week June Kay, 79, was told by a Lancashire council that binmen would no longer drive up to her house.
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