These terms and conditions apply to the North Lanarkshire Council garden waste collection service, provision of the Permit and online application processes, which together form a contract between the Customer and the Council.

By applying for this Garden waste collection Service, you accept these terms and conditions including any Payment charges.

North Lanarkshire Council Garden Waste Service is for domestic properties or Places of worship. The service is NOT available to other persons, companies or commercial businesses.

The Garden Waste Service is for the collection of organic garden waste that is presented in a brown 140/240 Litre wheeled bin.

To qualify, the Customer and their property must be on a pre-existing Council Brown bin collection route, have adequate storage space for wheeled bins within the curtilage of their property and be able to accommodate the wheeled bins at all times.

The service is only provided to the collection address specified in the customer’s application and permit. If you move home, please leave the bin at the property. If you are moving into an area which provides the garden waste collection service and there is no permit sticker on the garden waste bin at the new address, you will be required to apply for a new permit sticker.

The annual charge for the garden waste bin collection is £40 per bin emptied on a fortnightly basis, with the exception of two weeks over the Festive and New Year period, as no garden waste bin collection will take place during that time. Exact dates of this period will be published on the council website each year.

Customers will be liable to pay the annual charge regardless of whether or not they qualify for any reduction in council tax.

Application period for applying for a permit is from 1 April - 31 March.

The charging term lasts for a period of 12 months from 1 June to 31 May. The contract with each Customer runs from the date of Permit purchase until the end of the charging term i.e. 31 May.

The collection period is for all year with the exception of 2 weeks over the festive and New Year period, exact dates of this period will be published on the council website each year and collection calendars can be found by visiting When is my bin emptied? | North Lanarkshire Council.

​​​​​​The Council reserves the right to vary the charge of the service. Charges are set annually, and the Customer will be notified of any price increase as part of the annual renewal.

There are no exemptions to the scheme.

A valid Permit is required for each individual wheeled brown bin presented for collection.

Customers must have adequate storage space for wheeled bins within the curtilage of their property and be able to accommodate the wheeled bins at all times.

Expected delivery time of the permit from purchase to delivery is 21 days. Your bin will not be emptied during this period unless the permit has arrived and is displayed on the bin.

There will be no pro rata payments for customers that wish to join the service part way through the year and no refunds or part refunds for the cancellation of the service part way through the year.

There is a 14-day cancellation period for the Contract which starts on the day after purchase of the Service. If cancellation is made during this time frame, a full refund will be provided. If you have received the permit it must be returned in person or by post to the council before the refund will be granted. Thereafter, it can be cancelled at any time, but no refunds or part refunds will be given.

To ensure your collections continue uninterrupted, payment is required every year in advance, using the online form. You will be notified of the charge and payment date in March each year. If you don’t pay by the specified date, we will withdraw our service until such time as you re-join the scheme.

When garden waste bins are presented for collection the permit sticker must be clearly visible to the collection crew as per the instructions detailed in the letter posted with the permit.

Permits are issued detailing the individual property information; they are non-transferrable and only valid when presented at the property for which they were originally purchased.

The Council has no obligation under this contract to empty wheeled bins where they do not comply with these conditions.

If wheeled bins are inaccessible, or the passageway is determined as having the potential to cause risk or harm to the health of Council employees, then the waste will not be collected, and the Customer shall be required to ensure that the hazards are removed, or conditions improved before the next scheduled collection.

Bins must be presented at the kerbside from 7am on the day of collection. Please make sure the bin handle is facing the street.

Collection crews will not empty any bin that does not display a valid current permit sticker.

After the bin is emptied, it will be returned to the point of collection. It is your responsibility to make sure that the bin is returned to your property.

Your garden waste bin(s) must be used for garden and food waste only. Garden waste includes grass, cuttings, hedge clippings, twigs, bark, leaves, straw, hay, flowers, plants and small branches. Your garden waste bin should NOT be used for large branches, turf, earth, soil, stones, gravel etc. The garden waste must not be placed in plastic bags, as this affects the composting process.

The Council reserves the right not to empty bins in the following instances:

• Bins contain incorrect materials
• Bins are too heavy to safely manoeuvre
• Waste is heavily compacted or frozen
• Bins where the bin lid is not closed
• Bins from commercial premises
• Valid permit is not displayed on the bin

If wheeled bins are inaccessible, or the passageway is determined as having the potential to cause risk or harm to the health of Council employees, then the waste will not be collected, and the Customer shall be required to ensure that the hazards are removed, or conditions improved before the next scheduled collection.

If your bin is damaged during collection or if it falls into the rear of a refuse vehicle, we will repair or replace it free of charge and order you a replacement permit on your behalf, you do not need to contact us to arrange this.

If a bin is damaged in circumstances other than those described in clause 7.7 or stolen, then the customer will be responsible for ordering a new bin and meeting the costs of the new bin.

General cleaning and maintenance of the bin is the responsibility of the customer.

The Council reserves the right to alter customer collection day.

The Council reserves the right to inspect bins and their contents at any time to ensure proper use

Contaminated bins (i.e. bins containing incorrect material(s) will not be emptied. If your bin is contaminated, it is your responsibility to remove the item(s) of contamination prior to the next collection. If the contamination continues, we may remove the bin(s) and no refund applied.

The bin lid(s) must be completely closed, and no side waste will be collected, i.e. no extra waste next to the bin(s) or placed on the lid(s). If the bin is too heavy to be lifted safely, the householder will be expected to remove some garden waste making it safe to lift for the next scheduled collection.

If there is repeated Contamination in Brown bins used for this Service, the Council reserves the right to withdraw the Service from the Collection address. The Customer will be notified of this decision in writing.

The Customer is not eligible for a refund of the Payment where the Service is withdrawn for reason of Contamination.

Refunds will not be given if a collection is missed through circumstances beyond the control of the Council.

Bins should be placed at the kerbside or agreed collection point by 7am on the scheduled collection day for that bin. The Council will not return for bins missed due to late or incorrect presentation. It will be the resident’s responsibility to dispose of any excess waste, either free of charge at a Household Waste Recycling Centre or by arranging a chargeable special uplift (waste removed from in and bagged for uplift).

Where the bin has been missed due to a collection error, this should be reported online. If the Council agree that the cause of the missed bin was a collection error the bin should remain at the collection point, the Council will aim to collect it within 7 days. If after this time the vehicle has been unable to return the bin should be returned to the storage point and represent on the next scheduled collection day for this bin. 

If wheeled bins are inaccessible, or the passageway is determined as having the potential to cause risk or harm to the health of Council employees, then the waste will not be collected, and the Customer shall be required to ensure that the hazards are removed, or conditions improved before the next scheduled collection.

The Customer is entitled to use the Council's Household Waste Recycling Centres to dispose of domestic Garden Waste free of charge.

Please visit Household Waste Recycling Centre for more information.

If you wish to share a wheeled bin with one or more neighbours, you must agree one person who will register and pay for the collection service. It will be the responsibility of that group of neighbours to arrange their own payments among themselves and to ensure the wheeled bin is presented on the correct days.

There is no limit to how many wheeled bins you can register and pay for at an address. The charge will be applied for each wheeled bin.

In the event of cancelled or suspended garden waste collections e.g. due to industrial strike action/inclement weather, collections will commence on resumption of service provision. No refunds will be offered for collections missed due to these occurrences.

Garden waste collections will recommence once the reason for the service disruption has ceased. Information regarding any additional collections will be communicated via the website and social media channels.

To deliver this Service, we need to collect Customers' Personal data including the: 

• Customer's name 
• Collection address 
• Billing address 
• email address 
• telephone number 
• Payment details. 

We use this data: 

• for Customers to pay for the Service 
• to provide Customers with the Service 
• to manage and administer the Service 
• to contact Customers about changes to the Service 
• to contact Customers when their Service is to expire and to offer a renewal 
• to improve the design and performance of the Service 
• to investigate complaints 
• to manage the finances of the Service 
• to recover money Customers may owe us. 

The Council's privacy policy sets what information we collect, how we collect it, what we do with it, who we share it with and why.

For any service requests please report online.

The Council is committed to providing high quality services, if something goes wrong or you are unhappy with our services, please tell us.

The scheme is not mandatory. There is no requirement for residents to participate. 

Visit garden waste permit for further information and Frequently Asked Questions.

Please note these Terms and Conditions are subject to change at the Council’s discretion without notice. The current version will be held online. 

The Council Garden Waste Collection Service including the Permit and these Terms and Conditions will be governed by the Law of Scotland and subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Scottish Courts.