THE firm which collects Solihull’s bins has been told by council chiefs that its word will no longer be taken at face value after complaints rocketed.Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council said Enterprise, which it contracts to collect household waste, must provide information on how it has dealt with complaints.
Waste and recycling complaints are higher than in 2009 every month since April and rose from 40 in July 2009 to 130 the same month the following year.
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The council said complaints had risen because it stopped the collection of waste left outside bins and started charging for replacement bins and boxes.
There were also ‘general complaints about service delivery’, and complaints over collections disrupted by snow and ‘purple sack issues’. The sacks are for homes without wheelie bins.
Now the council says “that the ‘word’ of Enterprise is not solely relied upon without
confirmation that service delivery issues have been resolved”.
And it said the firm had not explained enough how it would improve the service.
A council report says: “Unfortunately no information of a acceptable quality was provided by
Enterprise for inclusion within this report.”
Actions are being taken following a formal complaint to the council, which resulted in an apology.
Enterprise must tell the council’s complaints team how it has dealt with residents’ problems, the council report adds.
The firm took over waste collection in January 2008.
When it was appointed, a council press release said: “Waste collection is the one service that touches everyone in our Borough, and we will be working very closely with the contractor to deliver the best possible service.”
* The council is offering homeowners the chance to get their green waste collected – for a fee.
Green bin collections stop from December to March but will continue on a monthly basis for £30 plus VAT.
An extra green wheelie bin costs £39. An extra 18 collections for any bin, from April to November, costs £60 plus VAT.
Click here for details.
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