Grandma slapped with £500 fine for fly-tipping after donating bag of clothes to charity

Kind-hearted Susan Cowdery, 66, brought her aged apparel and others belonging to her grandkids to a British Heart Foundation postulation slope successful Dartford, Kent but was near shocked by the response

A gobsmacked gran was slapped with a whopping £500 good for 'fly-tipping' aft she near a container of apparel adjacent to an overflowing charity bin.

Generous Susan Cowdery, 66, had taken her and her grandkids' aged apparel to a British Heart Foundation donation constituent successful Dartford, Kent, lone to find it full.

With the bin afloat to the brim, she placed her bags beside it, reasoning it would soon beryllium collected. But her bully deed turned sour erstwhile she got a missive from the assembly accusing her of fly-tipping and hitting her with a £500 fine.

The pensioner, who's nary alien to keeping her section country tidy by picking up litter, was appalled astatine the accusation. She said: "I was shocked, and I went backmost to them and said I wasn't fly-tipping. I thought due to the fact that it's full-up it's astir apt going to beryllium collected soon. I abhor fly-tipping and fly-tippers. I americium a liable national who regularly clears litter from my roadside area."

Despite receiving the good connected August 27 and appealing to Dartford assembly to scrap the steep charge, they've lone extended the outgo deadline, not cancelled it.

Now Susan and her hubby Phil Cowdery are digging their heels in, refusing to fork retired the currency connected principle, reports the Express.

Phil accused the assembly of not targeting existent offenders, saying: "The assembly doesn't drawback the existent fly-tippers, this is simply a mode of getting their numbers up. The bittersweet happening is the British Heart Foundation volition endure present due to the fact that we won't enactment apparel successful there."

As Susan, who precocious retired, calls connected the authorities to ace down connected much flagrant rubbish dumping instances, she lamented: "We spot it everywhere, each the fly-tipping with the mattresses. That's what they request to benignant out."

For implicit a period pursuing the penalty, Phil regularly checked the donation constituent connected Hawley Road, noting it was consistently overflowing and didn't look to beryllium emptied regularly. He observed that deterrent signs are not placed adjacent the donation banks but alternatively connected a metallic obstruction elsewhere, rendering them ineffective.

Company manager Phil argued: "The information it's each neatly folded successful a achromatic bag, we thought that's arsenic bully a crushed arsenic immoderate for it not to beryllium considered arsenic fly-tipping. I've ne'er seen the bin empty. If they are emptying it they are not doing it enough."

During a caller sojourn to the tract by reporters alongside the couple, it appeared the bin had yet been cleared, which Phil noted was the archetypal lawsuit successful astir six weeks.

The couple, who proudly person 9 grandchildren, judge a elemental informing would person been a fairer measurement by the council. Susan expressed however "stressful" this ordeal has been, to the grade that it impacted her blood pressure.

Area manager for the British Heart Foundation, Jack Watson, expressed his regret implicit Susan and Phil's experience. He acknowledged that retired of 4 donation points successful Dartford, lone the Hawley Road donation bin was emptied fortnightly alternatively of weekly.

Jack stated: "After proceeding of Susan and Phil's experience, we person temporarily accrued the frequence of collections astatine Hawley Road to let much radical to generously donate their unwanted, good-quality clothes. If 1 of our donation banks is afloat oregon your section store is closed, delight don't permission your container outside.

"Contact your section store during opening hours and they whitethorn beryllium capable to connection you a escaped collection, oregon invitation you to bring your donations into the store astatine a convenient time. Alternatively, you tin cheque to spot if different adjacent slope has space. We are precise grateful for each prime donations which assistance america money our life-saving research."

Dartford Council has been contacted for a comment.