Before you pay anybody – us included – it is worth knowing what your council will do, what it charges, and where it stops. For a few separate items that you can carry to the kerb yourself, the council is almost always cheaper than a private firm. We would rather you knew that.
What each council charges
| Council | Charge | Item limit |
|---|---|---|
| Caerphilly County Borough | £28 for 1–3 items, £33 for 4, £38 for 5, £43 for 6 | Maximum 6 |
| Cardiff | £12.50 for 1–2, £25 for 3–4, £37.50 for 5–6. Free for fully recyclable items including fridges, washing machines and spring mattresses | Maximum 6 |
| Newport | From £22 for up to 3 items | – |
| Vale of Glamorgan | £30 for 3 items, £5.50 per extra item | Maximum 5 |
| Torfaen | £29 for up to 3 items, £7 per extra | Maximum 8 |
| Monmouthshire | £20 for 1–3, £30 for 4. Half-van and full-van options also available | – |
Charges change. These were correct when this page was last updated – always check your own council’s website before booking anything.
The two catches
1. It is kerbside only, everywhere
Every council on that list will only collect items you have already put out at the boundary of your property. They will not come into the house, they will not carry a wardrobe down a flight of stairs, and they will not go into the back garden for a shed.
If you are elderly, on your own, not physically able to move a three-piece suite, or the item is on the second floor of a terrace, the council service is of no practical use to you. That is the single biggest reason people ring us.
2. You wait
Collections are booked and there is a queue. If you are completing on a house sale, ending a tenancy or clearing a property to a deadline, a three-week wait is not an option.
What none of them will take
The refusal lists are long and fairly consistent. Cardiff’s, for example, excludes:
- Building materials of any kind – rubble, tiles, timber, plasterboard
- Garden waste – soil, turf, hedge cuttings, decking, fence panels
- Asbestos and fibreglass
- Car parts and tyres
- Paint tins, chemicals and oil
- Gas bottles and fluorescent tubes
- Cast iron items
- Pianos
That refusal list is, more or less, our order book. It is not that we are cleverer than the council – it is that a licensed carrier can take material to permitted commercial facilities that a kerbside collection round is not set up for.
What about the tip?
Household waste recycling centres are free for household waste, and if you have a vehicle, the time, somebody to help you lift and a booking, they are the cheapest option going. Worth knowing before you set off:
- Most sites in this area require you to book a slot in advance
- Vans, pickups and trailers usually need a permit, and some sites refuse them outright
- There are limits on how much and how often
- No trade waste – if it came from a job, it is not household waste
Check your own council’s site for opening times, booking and van rules, because they differ between authorities and they change.
So when is a private firm worth it?
Be honest with yourself about which of these applies:
- You cannot lift it, or cannot get it out of the property
- It is on the refusal list – building waste, garden waste, tyres, paint
- There is more than six items’ worth
- You need it gone this week, not next month
- You have not got a vehicle, or a permit for the one you have
If none of those apply, use the council and save your money. If several do, here is how our pricing works – and we give you a fixed figure before we set off, not after.