Bins blocking blues: Aussie man's predicament sparks neighbourhood squabble

When it comes to neighbourhood harmony, it's often the little things that can create the biggest ripples.

Take, for instance, the seemingly mundane issue of bin placement on collection day—a weekly routine that most of us don't give a second thought to

However, for one Aussie man, it's become the source of an ongoing neighbourhood dispute that's as frustrating as it is surprising.


Sachin Paudel, a resident of Ngunnawal in Canberra's north, found himself at the centre of a bin-related issue when a red Skoda with P-plates repeatedly parked in front of his bins on collection day.

The obstruction meant that the garbage trucks couldn't access his bins, leaving Paudel with uncollected waste and a written directive from the council advising him to keep his bins clear of parked cars.


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Sachin Paudel expressed his frustration over a parked car repeatedly obstructing his bins on collection day. Credits: Shutterstock


‘On Tuesday night when I put my bin out, the car wasn’t there, but on Wednesday morning it was,’ Mr Paudel narrated, explaining that it wasn't a one-off incident, and had happened before.

‘The same car was parked in front of our bins when I left for work last Wednesday, and when I came back from work, there was a notice on the bin to put the bins away from the car. It said something like, “We had trouble collecting your bin, please put your bin away from cars.”’

Determined not to be caught out again, Paudel took matters into his own hands and left a note on the windshield of the offending vehicle.

‘I left a note on the car before I left for work,’ he said.

The note, captured in a photo, read: 'Please DO NOT PARK IN FRONT OF BINS!'

He also left behind the previous week's notice from the bin collectors as a stern warning.

Paudel also expressed his desire for the driver to receive a fine if they repeat parking there on bin day, particularly since there is no justification for leaving the vehicle in that location on the tranquil street.

He mentioned that he had to place his bins on the kerb in that spot, just down from his driveway, as there isn't enough space to manoeuvre his car around the bins on collection day.


Unfortunately, the situation between Paudel and his neighbour is quite unclear.

‘If the vehicle is illegally parked, it can be reported to Access Canberra who can investigate, confirm the issue, and may issue an infringement,’ an ACT Government spokesperson commented on the issue.

However, since the car is parked legally, Paudel has no recourse for having the vehicle towed or the driver fined.

Instead, the spokesperson suggested trying to resolve such issues amicably, noting that ‘often in these situations, people aren’t aware they’re causing an issue’.

‘The first step would be to reach out to the vehicle owner and express any concerns, and come to a mutual agreement,’ they advised.

‘Alternatively, the bin owner may wish to relocate their bins to the driveway for easy access for the garbage trucks.’


ACT residents are asked to follow a series of rules to ensure their bins are collected, but if these guidelines aren't met, the worst that can happen is that their rubbish remains uncollected.

The government takes an educational approach to waste management, preferring to guide residents rather than punish them for mistakes.
Rules to Ensure Bins are Collected.jpg
The frustration over bin placement and collection frequency in residential neighbourhoods is not uncommon, as evidenced by this recent dispute.

While some residents grappled with issues related to bin placement, others faced concerns about changes in their local council's waste management policies, leaving many residents feeling dissatisfied and inconvenienced.

The discontentment with council decisions regarding bin policies highlights a broader trend of community dissatisfaction with waste management practices.
Key Takeaways
  • An Australian man has experienced recurring issues with a parked car obstructing his bins on bin collection day in Canberra's suburb of Ngunnawal.
  • Despite leaving notes and receiving a written directive from the council, the man's bins were again blocked by the same car, leading to the bin collectors leaving a notice.
  • The ACT government spokesperson suggested resolving the issue personally with the vehicle owner, as the car is not parked illegally and therefore can't be fined or towed.
  • The ACT government's stance on household waste management emphasised education over punishment, not fining residents for contamination but rather providing information and guidance.
Have you ever experienced a similar 'annoying' problem that led to a dispute in your neighbourhood? How did you handle it? Did you manage to resolve it peacefully, or did it escalate? Share your stories and let's discuss them in the comments below!
 
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In our Shire, the Shire of Yarra Ranges the very small Red lidded bin for rubbish is only collected fortnightly. It is not enough. I rang & asked could we have another bin or larger. After taking down my details I was told it would be another $168 per year. Why? The Red ones are too small to be collected fortnightly it should be each week. A lot of people are not happy with this!
 
In our Shire, the Shire of Yarra Ranges the very small Red lidded bin for rubbish is only collected fortnightly. It is not enough. I rang & asked could we have another bin or larger. After taking down my details I was told it would be another $168 per year. Why? The Red ones are too small to be collected fortnightly it should be each week. A lot of people are not happy with this!
If you are on good terms with your neighbour simply ask them if it is ok to put your excess in their bin... being reasonable about how much you put in of course.
 
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Just put the bins either side at the extremities of your driveway, most cars will still fit through.
 
the council has the same problem in my town. The bins are put out in a non parking area, but still cars are parked there. The guys who do the rubbish run have to get out & shift the bins. This is a small rural community. The biggest offenders are travellers. They seem to think they can park any where, like across my driveway! I now have to park my car in the street
 
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I get that he has to put his bins away from his driveway to be able to get his car out of a morning but seriously it's not rocket science for him to reverse/drive his car out of his driveway then get out of his car and move his bins onto his driveway. Problem solved. My son does exactly this every week with our bins.
 
Find the owner and discuss that parking of the vehicle is causing problems and would the vehicle owner please not park in front of the bins on collection day and If complied with then have the vehicle towed away.
 
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Does the Skoda only park here once a week & that day being the day bins are cleared? If the answer is NO, IT PARKS THERE EVERY DAY, it would be obvious to me that it is not the Skoda driver but yourself who is the party at fault & you should definitely find somewhere else to place your bins which is closer to your own driveway on collection day.
 
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If the Skoda only Parks there on bin day.
Put your car on the road if you're going out.
Place the bins across your driveway, now open all four valves on the Skoda's tyre's, repeat at your leisure.
 
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There's one issue in this story which angers me.

That is the way councils, and state governments, are starting to default to passing the buck for sorting out issues that are related to their rules, policies and responsibilities to members of the public.

Some years back I was being bothered by a noisy neighbour who repeatedly had noisy social events running well after 10:30pm.

I went to the council website to find they recommended calling the police, but the police advised me to talk to the neighbours directly.

A 60+ senior with a heart problem being advised to confront an apartment full of 25-30yo's who'd been drinking for hours.

I suggested to the police that this was hardly "protecting the public", but they just said "take it to the council" and hung up.


Public Service isn't what it was when I was working for government departments.
 
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There's one issue in this story which angers me.

That is the way councils, and state governments, are starting to default to passing the buck for sorting out issues that are related to their rules, policies and responsibilities to members of the public.

Some years back I was being bothered by a noisy neighbour who repeatedly had noisy social events running well after 10:30pm.

I went to the council website to find they recommended calling the police, but the police advised me to talk to the neighbours directly.

A 60+ senior with a heart problem being advised to confront an apartment full of 25-30yo's who'd been drinking for hours.

I suggested to the police that this was hardly "protecting the public", but they just said "take it to the council" and hung up.


Public Service isn't what it was when I was working for government departments.
Not sure where you live but where l live in W.A. midnight is 'the witching hour' when neighbours are supposed to kill their party noise so people can sleep.
 
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Not sure where you live but where l live in W.A. midnight is 'the witching hour' when neighbours are supposed to kill their party noise so people can sleep.
It's not the time that's the issue, it's expecting the public to 'police' the law that I was referring to.

But, in respect to those neighbours, you would have had problems as well as their parties often continued well past midnight and even past dawn on occasion.

In NSW and other states it's 10pm. If you have to leave home before 6am to get to work by 8am (or 9am in some parts of Sydney), you need to get to sleep early.
 
There's one issue in this story which angers me.

That is the way councils, and state governments, are starting to default to passing the buck for sorting out issues that are related to their rules, policies and responsibilities to members of the public.

Some years back I was being bothered by a noisy neighbour who repeatedly had noisy social events running well after 10:30pm.

I went to the council website to find they recommended calling the police, but the police advised me to talk to the neighbours directly.

A 60+ senior with a heart problem being advised to confront an apartment full of 25-30yo's who'd been drinking for hours.

I suggested to the police that this was hardly "protecting the public", but they just said "take it to the council" and hung up.


Public Service isn't what it was when I was working for government departments.
All toothless tigers.....
 
It's not the time that's the issue, it's expecting the public to 'police' the law that I was referring to.

But, in respect to those neighbours, you would have had problems as well as their parties often continued well past midnight and even past dawn on occasion.

In NSW and other states it's 10pm. If you have to leave home before 6am to get to work by 8am (or 9am in some parts of Sydney), you need to get to sleep early.
I have had cause to phone the Police years ago to a neighbour's party & they received a visit, but that was when the public mattered. The neighbour behind got the message some time ago & other neighbours around me tone things down early.

I am not unaccustomed to knocking on a neighbour's door or raise their attention over the fence when a party goes on after midnight. The message is received.

I can well imagine trying to be rested enough for work but not being able to because of the din from a noisy neighbour. I am reminded of my, now son - in - law, who was having a party at his parent's home in a outer suburb. His father told him to turn the music down because all the neighbours would hear would be boom, boom, boom whereas we heard music.
 
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