The council has warned Croydon shopkeepers after ten businesses were handed fines during the latest crackdown on illegal dumping.

Over the past three years Croydon Council has introduced time restrictions on when businesses in fly-tipping hotspot areas can legally leave their trade waste on the street for collection to stop other people adding more rubbish illegally.

More than 3,000 businesses along major routes affected by fly-tipping, from London Road in Norbury to Brighton Road in Coulsdon, can only have their trade rubbish collected between 5pm and 8am. This waste has to be properly bagged and sealed and collected by a licensed private contractor.

Known as time-banded waste collection, it was introduced in 2016 as part of the council’s Don’t Mess With Croydon – Take Pride campaign.

However, an operation focusing on 40 businesses along Thornton Heath High Street earlier this month found several traders either leaving their own trade waste outside these times, dumping loose items or littering.

Out of 40 visits by council officers and Veolia staff, 10 fixed penalty notices of £150 were issued, including six for not leaving trade waste in the correct bags, two for fly-tipping and two for littering.

Councillor Stuart Collins, deputy leader – Clean Green Croydon said: “To keep pavements outside shops clear of fly-tips, shopkeepers must be properly licensed and get rid of their rubbish responsibly.

“The mess caused by shopfront fly-tipping is bad for the environment and bad for business, so this operation is a wake-up call for shopkeepers to follow the rules or risk both more fines and fewer customers.”