Garden waste terms and conditions

By subscribing to the garden waste service you are agreeing to the following terms and conditions, which apply from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024. 

The green garden waste bag

1. A green garden waste bag will be delivered to you within 10 working days of joining the service for the first time
2. Bags are provided for use by the customer but remain the property of New Forest District Council (NFDC)
3. Only official NFDC garden waste bags will be collected. Other bags, sacks and containers will not be accepted
4. Subscriptions are capped at 5 bags per household
5. Your collection team may exchange the bag presented for another due to operational reasons
6. Bags will be replaced by the collection team when necessary due to reasonable wear and tear
7. Customers whose bag is lost or stolen can request a new one by contacting customer.services@nfdc.gov.uk
8. Collection teams will not remove any bags that are presented for collection that are in addition to those paid for by subscription
9. New bags will not be issued to customers who are renewing the subscription as it is assumed that they will continue to use the bags from the previous subscription year
10. The bags can be used for the following materials: grass cuttings, hedge clippings, flowers and non-invasive weeds, leaves, twigs and small branches up to diameter of less than 75mm
11. The bags cannot be used for: fruit or vegetable peeling, food waste, invasive weeds (such as Japanese Knotweed or Himalayan Balsam), large branches more than 75mm in diameter, logs or tree stumps, Christmas trees, animal waste and bedding, soil, rubble, concrete, stones, plastic bags, pots or trays

Collection day

1. Collections of garden waste will be made once a fortnight, with the exception of a two week period between Christmas and the New Year
2. A collection calendar will be posted to you within 10 working days of joining or renewing your subscription to the garden waste scheme and is also available to view online
3. NFDC reserves the right to change your collection day for operational reasons and will notify you in advance should changes need to take place
4. Garden waste bags must be presented for collection by 6.00am on collection day
5. Bags must be placed just within the property boundary in plain view nearest to the public road or access point, unless otherwise agreed with NFDC
6. Assisted collections are available to residents who are physically unable to move the bag to the collection point and where there is nobody available to help them in the household. Contact customer.services@nfdc.gov.uk for more information
7. Collection teams will only empty the number of bags that have been paid for by the customer
8. Teams will not return to collect bags that were presented for collection after 6am on collection day, in the wrong location or that were contaminated with materials that are not collected as part of this scheme
9. If a bag is contaminated, the team will leave a card to advise what needs to be removed before the next scheduled collection
10. The maximum weight of the bag presented for collection should be no more than 20kg. Bags weighing more than this will not be collected
11. The team will return the bag to the collection point after emptying
12. If the bag has been presented correctly but has been missed by the team, the customer can report this to customer.services@nfdc.gov.uk within 24 hours, and leave the bag just within the property boundary for collection. It may take up to two working days for a team to make this collection
13. There may be exceptional circumstances (such as winter weather or unexpected road closures) that prevent garden waste collections taking place for safety or operational reasons. Information about changes to collections under these circumstances will be posted on the NFDC website and our Twitter account. 
14. No refunds will be given for collections missed due to circumstances beyond NFDC's control

Charging and cancellations

1. The garden waste scheme is intended for use by domestic residents only.
2. The collection year runs from April - March
3. Customers may join the scheme at any point during the year. There is a sliding scale of charges if you join later in the collection year which can be viewed on the NFDC website
4. Subscriptions to the garden waste scheme are allocated to the customer and not the property. Subscriptions are not transferable between people (e.g. if you move house and the new owners wish to continue using the service they must subscribe themselves)
5. If the customer moves to another property within the district they must notify NFDC at least 10 working days before collections are required at the new address and take the bag with them. Failure to notify NFDC in time may result in missed collections
6. If a customer moves out of the NFDC area then they can cancel the service by contacting customer.services@nfdc.gov.uk
7. The cost of the service is non-refundable unless there are extenuating circumstances and then part-refunds may be made at the discretion of the service manager
8. Customers paying by Direct Debit will be notified of subscription charges to be debited from their account in advance
9. Failure to make payment to cover the next collection year by the renewal date stated in the reminder notice could result in the service being removed until payment is made. No refunds will be made for collections missed due to late payment
10. Customers not paying by Direct Debit will be sent a reminder in advance of the renewal date to renew their subscription

Contacting us

Email us at customer.services@nfdc.gov.uk