A WOMAN has been left furious after she was fined £400 by the council for tipping, despite begging for a bin for THREE years.
Georgina Searl, 63, has called in the local authorities and claims they are to blame after ignoring her pleas for a blue trash can.
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Hanley’s grandma, Stoke on Trentexplained that she couldn’t properly dispose of her cardboard because she was left without the blue bin.
She instead put it in a black garbage bag and put it in her general trash, ready to be taken away.
But Georgina claims the garbage collectors removed the cardboard bag from her bin while she was holed up in her home suffering from Covid.
The 63-year-old says locals then began piling their rubbish on top of her rubbish, watching helplessly as she self-isolated.
She was then handed a hefty £400 fine by Stoke-on-Trent City Council for tipping – while other residents “get away with it”.
Georgina, who suffers from MS, says she is being unfairly punished by the local government for having no choice after repeatedly asking for a blue trash can.
And as she struggles to keep her head above water amid the cost of living, the grandma says she can’t afford the expensive fine.
She said StokeonTrentLive: “I had Covid at the time and couldn’t leave the house because I was unwell and couldn’t move.
“But people started rummaging through the bag and putting their own trash in it. I was stuck in the house, I couldn’t do anything.
“The municipality then collected it and then I was fined which blamed me for all the waste because the garbage bag had my data on it. I was shocked.
“They can’t expect me to pay this fine. I have nowhere to put my recycling, because I don’t have a blue bin and it wasn’t me who put the bag of cardboard on the floor – it was the garbage collectors.”
Georgina says she has been forced to live without a blue trash can since she moved in with her three years ago.
The store owner added: “I’ve told the council about the lack of a blue bin before, but they just said they’d look into it.”
She is now preparing to challenge the fine after seeking advice from the Citizen’s Advice Bureau.
Georgina furious: “The council just told me to pay for it because they think all the garbage is mine.
“But everyone put their trash there and they get away with it. It wasn’t just my cardboard there.
“I know I made a mistake by putting cardboard in the wrong bin, but I have nowhere to put my recycling.
“The shop is not making enough money to pay the £400 fine. I only took home £78 last week.
“I have to get the money from somewhere, but I don’t know how to do it. There is no way I can pay it in full.
“They just say it’s my responsibility to pay, but not all the crap is mine. Which I don’t think is right. It’s put me under a lot of stress.”
The Sun has approached Stoke-on-Trent City Council for comment.