How far have costs been cut in your block?

Unfortunately, some unscrupulous companies are doing well from knowing that there is not much money to spend and are under cutting prices to such a degree that their services look appetising and they are winning contracts just on price alone. However, there can be many drawbacks to this including untrained staff, poor service, no guarantees, no complaints procedures, incorrect equipment/cleaning products being used, and in some cases this is having adverse consequences on the environment.

Recent reports by the Environment Agency are stating that environmental issues are on the increase like ¯y tipping, which has seen a dramatic increase in the last year with at least 14% of regional representatives and 16% of local representatives stating that ¯y-tipping on private land was considered to be a major problem with the most problematic types of waste overall being tyres, construction, household and white goods.

If you do employ a contractor to remove waste, they should have a environment agency certificate to carry waste and have a transfer of waste policy in place. Any contractor that has not got this may be cutting corners and you may be inadvertently helping towards pollution as the chances are they will not use a commercial recycling facility to dispose of the items. Although initially you may have saved money by using a cheaper contractor, one council has reported that in the last year it has cost the tax payer in their borough alone over £6.9 million (Yorkshire & Humber) while Haringey council stated that if they found anyone to have used an unlicensed waste contractor who subsequently dumps their rubbish illegally then the person who hired them can also be fined – so eventually you will be paying a higher price along the line.

Bonafide companies will have all the right documentation in place such as public and employee insurance, all staff will be fully trained; the company will have a health and safety policy that is reviewed annually, have an environmental policy in place and will have accreditations to prove this by recognised organisations.