Residents on St Paul's Road in Rock Ferry say their bins have not been emptied for about a month after a "dispute" with a binman. Neighbours Gail Jordan and Steve Jones contacted the ECHO after binmen failed to collect the "smelling" bins, which they say are now "piled-high with rubbish, started to smell and attracted hundreds of flies." They fear rats could be drawn to their homes.
Assistance stopped after 'minor dispute'
Ms Jordan, 59, who has lived on the street for three years, says the problems began when binmen stopped helping residents with their weekly collections. The area is home to many people with mobility issues and disabilities who need assistance with everyday tasks. Those who are disabled or in ill health and have no one to help move their bins can apply for an Assisted Bin Collection on the Wirral Council website.
However, Ms Jordan says binmen have "always" given them assistance without applying for the special service online, until about a month ago following a "minor dispute" with a driver. She said: "On Wednesday [July 29] the binmen took one large black-bin bag out of my wheelie bin but left a small white bag at the bottom and drove off. The bin lorry drove back down the road a bit later so I waved the driver to stop and asked them to take the bin bag.
"It wasn't an issue that they'd left it, but with the hot weather I didn't want it sitting in my bin for another week. He was a bit rude to me and we had a few words. Then, the following week, around ten of us on the street didn't have our bins emptied."
Neighbours unable to manage bins alone
Ms Jordan, who has arthritis, says she has always had assistance with her bins since living there. She added: "One of my neighbours was born severely disabled, he's in a wheelchair and only has one hand to control his wheelchair, he needs assistance to put his bins out, he can't do it on his own.
"Another lady, who has lived here for 13 years, has never registered either. They haven't got family to help them either." Ms Jordan contacted Wirral Council to ask why the bins were not emptied and says she was told it was because she had not registered for assistance and had not put them out for collection. She has now hit back, claiming they have "never" had to register for assistance until the recent dispute.
Neighbour Steve Jones, 65, relies on his mobility scooter to get around and told the ECHO he cannot put his own bins out. Photos show his bin overflowing with rubbish.
Council response
A Wirral Council spokesperson said: "One of the residents on St Paul’s Road has applied for assisted bin collections and their request is currently being processed.
"Requests for assisted collections are handled on an individual basis so neighbours will need to make their own application and it will be considered based on their personal circumstances."
