Fly-tipping is increasingly becoming a common problem in rural areas. This article, aimed at farmers and rural landowners, looks at the essentials of who is responsible for dealing with it, the key risks to be mindful of when dealing with it on your land and the options available to those whose land is targeted.
What is fly-tipping?
Fly-tipping is the illegal deposit of controlled waste on land that does not have an appropriate environmental permit or exemption for that waste. The principal criminal offence is contained in the Environmental Protection Act 1990, which prohibits depositing, treating, or disposing of controlled waste in a manner likely to cause pollution of the environment or harm to human health.
"Controlled waste" is broad, covering household, industrial, and commercial waste. However, the nature of the waste matters: hazardous materials such as asbestos, tyres, chemicals, and clinical waste carry higher penalties and more significant remediation obligations.
The penalties on conviction are serious with unlimited fines and potentially prison time, the length and amount of which depends on the conviction. Fixed Penalty Notices can also be issued by local authorities for smaller deposits.
Who is responsible for fly-tipping on private land?
If fly-tipping occurs on your private land, the legal and financial responsibility for clearing the waste sits with you as the landowner or occupier - not with the person who dumped it, and not with the local council.
There is no statutory duty on local authorities to remove waste that has been fly-tipped on private land.
The obligation to keep land clear of waste arises from a combination of environmental legislation and, in some circumstances, statutory nuisance law. If waste on your land is causing a statutory nuisance - or is likely to do so - the local authority can serve an abatement notice requiring you to deal with it. Failure to comply can result in prosecution, even though you are the victim.
The costs of removal, safe disposal, and ground remediation following a significant illegal deposit can be eye-watering. There is currently no general right to recover those costs from a local authority, and while in theory you may seek to pursue the person responsible in the civil courts, identifying and then recovering any sums from the fly-tipper is often the most significant practical obstacle.
Who is responsible for fly-tipping on public land?
The position is different where the fly-tipping occurs on a public highway, a public right of way, or other publicly maintained land. Local highways authorities are responsible for the maintenance of public highways and have powers, and in some cases duties, to remove waste deposited on them.
Where a public footpath or bridleway crosses your land, the position depends on the nature of the route. If the path is maintainable at public expense, the responsibility for dealing with waste on the surface of the path itself may rest with the highways authority, though this is not always straightforward in practice. Where a public right of way runs across your land and waste is dumped adjacent to (but not on) the surface of that route, responsibility sits with you as the landowner or occupier of the surrounding land.
If you are uncertain about the maintenance responsibilities for any route crossing your land, the definitive map and statement held by the local authority will be the starting point - though as any reader of our previous article on rights of way will know, rights of way can be complex and may require careful legal analysis.
Who do I report an incident of fly-tipping on my land to?
Different bodies have different enforcement powers and therefore it is important to understand the distinctions between them when reporting an incident:
- The Environment Agency is the primary regulator for serious and organised fly-tipping, particularly large-scale or hazardous deposits. It has powers of investigation, prosecution, and the ability to serve remediation notices. You should report serious fly-tipping - especially hazardous waste - to the Environment Agency via its 24-hour incident hotline.
- Your local district or borough council deals with lower-level fly-tipping offences and has powers to investigate and prosecute. Local councils can issue Fixed Penalty Notices and, in relation to public land within their area, have duties to keep areas clear of rubbish. You should therefore also report fly-tipping to your local council, who will log the incident.
- The police have powers to investigate fly-tipping as part of broader waste crime enforcement, and in some areas dedicated rural crime teams work alongside the Environment Agency and local councils.
What can I do to protect my land from fly-tipping and the associated costs?
Prevention can be considerably cheaper than clean-up costs, so we would suggest considering the following practical steps to reduce the risk of fly-tipping on your land.
- Control access. Fly-tippers favour locations that are easily accessible by vehicle, out of sight, and where they are unlikely to be disturbed. Securing field gates with robust locks, installing concrete or earth bunds across vulnerable access points, and displaying appropriate signage can all make a difference.
- Increase monitoring. CCTV and trail cameras are a practical option even for remote locations. Images or footage of a fly-tipping incident - particularly vehicle registration plates - are invaluable both for enforcement action and for insurance purposes.
- Check your insurance. Many existing farm insurance policies do not automatically cover fly-tipping clearance costs. It is worth reviewing your policy carefully with your broker as some agricultural insurers offer specific cover for waste removal following illegal deposits on your land. Given the potential scale of clean-up costs, particularly where hazardous waste is concerned, this is a gap often worth addressing
- Report every incident. Each incident - no matter how small - should be reported so it feeds into local enforcement priorities. An area with a pattern of incidents is more likely to attract proactive enforcement attention.
If you would like to discuss fly-tipping or its potential implications, please do not hesitate to get in touch with Charlotte Brasher and Katie Burbridge in our Agricultural Disputes team.
What is fly-tipping?
Fly-tipping is the illegal deposit of controlled waste on land that does not have an appropriate environmental permit or exemption for that waste. The principle criminal offense is contained in the Environmental Protection Act 1990, which prohibits depositing, treating, or disposing of controlled waste in a manner likely to cause pollution of the environment or harm to human health.
"Controlled waste" is broad, covering household, industrial, and commercial waste. However, the nature of the waste matters: hazardous materials such as asbestos, tyres, chemicals, and clinical waste carry higher penalties and more significant remediation obligations.
The penalties on conviction are serious with unlimited fines and potentially prison time, the length and amount of which depends on the conviction. Fixed Penalty Notices can also be issued by local authorities for smaller deposits.
Who is responsible for fly-tipping on private land?
If fly-tipping occurs on your private land, the legal and financial responsibility for clearing the waste sits with you as the landowner or occupier - not with the person who dumped it, and not with the local council.
There is no statutory duty on local authorities to remove waste that has been fly-tipped on private land.
The obligation to keep land clear of waste arises from a combination of environmental legislation and, in some circumstances, statutory nuisance law. If waste on your land is causing a statutory nuisance - or is likely to do so - the local authority can serve an abatement notice requiring you to deal with it. Failure to comply can result in prosecution, even though you are the victim.
The costs of removal, safe disposal, and ground remediation following a significant illegal deposit can be eye-watering. There is currently no general right to recover those costs from a local authority, and while in theory you may seek to pursue the person responsible in the civil courts, identifying and then recovering any sums from the fly-tipper is often the most significant practical obstacle.
Who is responsible for fly-tipping on public land?
The position is different where the fly-tipping occurs on a public highway, a public right of way, or other publicly maintained land. Local highways authorities are responsible for the maintenance of public highways and have powers, and in some cases duties, to remove waste deposited on them.
Where a public footpath or bridleway crosses your land, the position depends on the nature of the route. If the path is maintainable at public expense, the responsibility for dealing with waste on the surface of the path itself may rest with the highways authority, though this is not always straightforward in practice. Where a public right of way runs across your land and waste is dumped adjacent to (but not on) the surface of that route, responsibility sits with you as the landowner or occupier of the surrounding land.
If you are uncertain about the maintenance responsibilities for any route crossing your land, the definitive map and statement held by the local authority will be the starting point - though as any reader of our previous article on rights of way will know, rights of way can be complex and may require careful legal analysis.
Who do I report an incident of fly-tipping on my land to?
Different bodies have different enforcement powers and therefore it is important to understand the distinctions between them when reporting an incident:
- The Environment Agency is the primary regulator for serious and organised fly-tipping, particularly large-scale or hazardous deposits. It has powers of investigation, prosecution, and the ability to serve remediation notices. You should report serious fly-tipping - especially hazardous waste - to the Environment Agency via its 24-hour incident hotline.
- Your local district or borough council deals with lower-level fly-tipping offences and has powers to investigate and prosecute. Local councils can issue Fixed Penalty Notices and, in relation to public land within their area, have duties to keep areas clear of rubbish. You should therefore also report fly-tipping to your local council, who will log the incident.
- The police have powers to investigate fly-tipping as part of broader waste crime enforcement, and in some areas dedicated rural crime teams work alongside the Environment Agency and local councils.
What can I do to protect my land from fly-tipping and associated costs?
Prevention can be considerably cheaper than clean-up costs, so we would suggest considering the following practical steps to reduce the risk of fly-tipping on your land:
- Control access. Fly-tippers favour locations that are easily accessible by vehicle, out of sight, and where they are unlikely to be disturbed. Securing field gates with robust locks, installing concrete or earth bunds across vulnerable access points, and displaying appropriate signage can all make a difference.
- Increase monitoring. CCTV and trail cameras are a practical option even for remote locations. Images or footage of a fly-tipping incident - particularly vehicle registration plates - are invaluable both for enforcement action and for insurance purposes.
- Check your insurance. Many existing farm insurance policies do not automatically cover fly-tipping clearance costs. It is worth reviewing your policy carefully with your broker as some agricultural insurers offer specific cover for waste removal following illegal deposits on your land. Given the potential scale of clean-up costs, particularly where hazardous waste is concerned, this is a gap often worth addressing.
- Report every incident. Each incident - no matter how small - should be reported so it feeds into local enforcement priorities. An area with a pattern of incidents is more likely to attract proactive enforcement attention.
If you would like to discuss fly-tipping or its potential implications, please do not hesitate to get in touch with our specialist Agriculture & Rural Estates team.
