Woman has £1,000 fine for charity donation revoked

A woman who received a £1,000 fly-tipping penalty after leaving a bag of donations at a collection point has had the fine revoked, she has said.

Kate Clayton, from West Malling in Kent, said she was stopped by a worker in council uniform and fined shortly after leaving a bag of clothes at a donation point, which was full.

Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council have since rescinded the fine and apologised after being approached by the BBC, which Clayton said left her "so happy and relieved".

Council contractor Kingdom Local Authority Support, which issued the fine, said it was "content the relevant enforcement processes were followed".

Clayton, who works as a teacher, told the BBC that the worker refused to drop the fine despite her offer to take the bag home, which she did anyway.

She said she "honestly thought he was going to ask me for directions" and that she told him she was "not fly-tipping, I'm donating to charity".

The 57-year-old said she had managed to fit two bags of clothing into the donation bin at a supermarket in West Malling before it filled up and she had left the third bag next to it.

"I was beyond distressed, I couldn't believe it," Clayton told the BBC.

"It was just an awful experience."

She added: "The trouble is there's a lot of fly-tipping goes on but I'm sure those people don't get fined."

A Kingdom Local Authority Support spokesperson said the process followed was "in line with agreed policies with Tonbridge and Mailing Borough Council".

"In accordance with national legislation, leaving items outside charity donation banks is classed as fly-tipping," the company added.

"Such items are not collected or removed by the charities operating the banks and can lead to obstruction, environmental issues, and additional costs for local authorities and the taxpayer."

A spokesperson for Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council said: "We have reviewed this case and can confirm that the fine has been rescinded.

"We apologise to the resident for the inconvenience and any concern this may have caused.

We have instructed Kingdom to cease any further enforcement action in such instances."

In a letter to Clayton revoking the fine, the council said her "original complaint was, unfortunately, overlooked" and apologised for any distress that it may have been caused.

Clayton contacted the BBC after reading about two neighbours who were fined by Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council for leaving charity collection bags outside their homes.

The authority increased its maximum fines for littering and fly-tipping in 2024.

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