BIN collection times and holidays rules are now out for the New Year and ignoring them could cost people £400.
Households across the UK are now groaning with rubbish from the holiday period.
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The Christmas period tends to result in households having an excess of food packaging, bottles and cans.
Wrapping paper and cardboard boxes also need getting rid off.
The New Year can be a slightly bewildering period for many as people recover from the holiday period.
Local authorities will now be informing residents about when their bins will be collected in the first week of January.
If you haven’t received a letter by post, you should be able to access all the information on your council’s website.
The majority of local authorities have advised there will be no collections on Monday 1 January.
Collections will take place one day later than normal, including a Saturday collection for those normally collected on Friday.
The basics
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If you haven’t received a letter by post, you should be able to access all the information on your council’s website.
And don’t worry if you’re not sure which exact council you fall under – you can just use the government’s council finder on its website.
You only need to pop in your postcode.
The rubbish
Most of the rules depend on where you live, however there are general rules which most local authorities follow.
For example in Manchester, paper and cardboard goes in a blue bin. Tins, cans, bottles and jars are thrown into the brown bin.
Garden and food related waste goes in the green bin. The grey bin is for things that cannot be recycled. This includes some electrical items and plastic waste.
The fines
You may be charged up to £400 if you go against the rules written by your local council.
Usually, these involve items that should be going into your recycling bin rather than general waste.
Normally, labels on items will tell you how to dispose of them, like foil wrapping or glitter which can’t be put into recycling.
If you miss a council collection
Mistakes do happen and its easy to miss a collection slot if you are busy.
Most local authorities have waste and recycling centres that take are open seven days a week.
Staff the waste centre can then advise you on where to dump your household rubbish.
And supermarkets like Tesco offer recycling for soft packaging that isn’t collected by council recycling.
