Father tells of anger after fly-tipping saga in Warninglid

Phil Wagner, 43, of Staplefield Lane, Warninglid, shared the CCTV footage with the Middy, which shows a freezer being dumped on his driveway.

He said he went to the council and police about it, telling them he had a ‘good mugshot of the guy’, but said nothing was done.

He said: “We have been on the receiving end of fly-tipping on several occasions now on our country lane.

“This was the latest incident, but what the fly-tipper did not realise at the time was that he was being caught on CCTV offloading the huge industrial chest freezer onto our driveway.

“I contacted the council and said I had some really good CCTV, they came round within three days to remove the freezer, but I never heard from anyone about what was being done about it.”

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Phil, who lives with his wife Suzanne, 45, and their two young children, said he approached the council again and got a response from its waste management team saying his query had been forwarded to the team leader, as it ‘looked to be an important case’, but he said he has not heard anything since.

He also said he spoke to a police community support officer at Haywards Heath Police Station and was told to call 101, but he said this did not make sense as he ‘couldn’t send the CCTV to a telephone number’.

The Sussex Police website advises people to contact their local authority to report fly-tipping incidents.

“No one seems to be interested. I just feel frustrated,” Phil added.

“It happens all the time on our road. My wife couldn’t get out the drive when this freezer was dumped.

“If you miss your council tax payment, they come down on you like a ton of bricks, I appreciate everything is stretched, but it just makes me feel angry that no one seems to be interested – it is a criminal offence.

Phil said it seemed like the council were good at removing the fly-tipping, but nothing is done afterwards.

He said he thinks residents would like to know how fly-tipping is being tackled, and who by.

A spokesman for Mid Sussex District Council said: “We are grateful to the public for all evidence they have provided in this case so far but unfortunately it has only revealed a partial number plate, which is not enough detail to undertake any legal action at this stage.”