Harrow bulky waste: one free collection a year, then it gets expensive
Four items free once every twelve months. After that it is £59.70 for the same four.
Harrow gives every household one free bulky collection a year, which is more generous than several neighbouring boroughs — and the rules around it are strict enough that people lose it without meaning to.
What it costs
Noise complaints in Harrow: there is no night service
The council says so itself. A party at 2am cannot be dealt with at 2am.
The free collection covers up to four items once every twelve months. You can add up to four more on the same visit for £28.45, to a maximum of eight in total.
Once the free collection is used, one to four items cost £59.70, five to eight £87.70 and nine to twelve £115.70. More than twelve is priced on application. If you forget to put the items out, or put out something that was not in the booking, a return visit is £18.17 — and you lose the free collection.
What counts as an item
Harrow garden waste: £69 a year, and no refunds for signing up late
The price has been frozen for three years, direct debit is closed to new customers, and there is no pro-rata.
Three tied black sacks make one item, up to 10kg. One fence panel is one item. Nothing may be over five feet except mattresses, sofas and fridges, and kitchen or storage units are capped at 1.2 metres.
What they will not take
Baths, sinks and toilets. Car parts and tyres. Clinical waste. Oil drums and gas canisters. Soil, rubble and building waste. Asbestos and hazardous waste. Glass. Tree waste. Windows and frames. Industrial, American-style and French-door fridge freezers are refused, though single-door domestic fridges and freezers are collected, and so are mattresses.
Booking and timing
Booking is online only through a MyHarrow account — there is no booking phone line. You can change the date up to two working days before; cancel later than that and there is no refund.
Put the items out after 4pm the day before or before 6am on the day. Crews collect from 6am and will not knock on the door.
If you have just moved in and the previous occupant used the free collection, you can have it reset by producing a recent council tax bill.
Questions this report answers
+Is bulky waste collection free in Harrow?
Once a year. Every household gets one free collection of up to four items every twelve months. Four more items on the same visit cost £28.45. After the free collection is used, one to four items cost £59.70.
+What counts as one item?
Three tied black sacks up to 10kg count as one item, and one fence panel is one item. Nothing may be over five feet except mattresses, sofas and fridges; kitchen and storage units are capped at 1.2 metres.
+What will Harrow not collect?
Baths, sinks and toilets, car parts and tyres, clinical waste, oil drums and gas canisters, soil and rubble, asbestos, glass, tree waste, windows and frames, and industrial, American-style or French-door fridge freezers. Single-door domestic fridges and mattresses are collected.
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