Businessman James Hinton pleaded guilty to two counts of fly-tipping at Worcester Magistrates Court, 20 May.
As a director of Leominster Farm Supplies (trading as Hintons Country and Garden), Hinton was fined £3,832 with costs of £1,978 plus a victim surcharge of £190 having also failed to transfer controlled waste to an authorised person or produce waste transfer notes. As a result, he now has a criminal record.
At the hearing, the court heard how, in April 2019, Herefordshire Council received a complaint about waste deposited at Hinton’s home address. Photographs showed the vehicle used for transporting the waste was owned by Leominster Farm Supplies. In May 2019, the waste, which mainly consisted of household furniture, was set alight by family members.
In his defence, Hinton stated that the waste was from fly-tipping on land his business owned and that he had a permit to burn green waste. However, officers found similar household waste ready for disposal at Hinton’s business premises. Hinton was therefore offered a fixed penalty notice of £400 for fly-tipping. Having refused to accept it, Hinton was interviewed for the offence as a director of Leominster Farm Supplies and Leominster Property Services. He eventually admitted fly-tipping and duty of care offences.
Marc Willimont, head of public protection says:
“Unlawful waste disposal and fly-tipping costs council tax payers tens of thousands of pounds each year. Businesses do this to avoid the cost of disposing of their waste lawfully. All businesses must ensure appropriate measures are in place so the waste they produce is disposed of correctly. Businesses must also have documentation to show who they have transferred the waste to and keep those records for at least two years. Anyone found fly-tipping waste will always be prosecuted.”
The maximum penalty for failing to produce waste transfer notes is a £5,000 fine.
Herefordshire’s community protection team regularly carry out spot checks on waste carriers and will investigate unlawful waste disposal and fly-tipping cases that are reported via the council’s webpage or by calling 01432 261761. The site also provides more information on responsible waste disposal for residents and businesses.