Harrow Council has urged people to mark their bins following reports of them going missing after collections.

Ashok Bhatt, of Northwold Drive, Pinner, was left frustrated after he was forced to pay £63 to replace his recycling bin after it disappeared one morning.

He believes that it was put back in the wrong place and suggested that it might have been taken by an opportunistic passer-by.

The council explained that workers will put the bins back where they are picked up from but acknowledged that, sometimes, bins do go missing.

A spokeswoman for Harrow Council said: “People often find this hard to believe, but bin theft is a scourge of every borough in the country.

“Sometimes they turn up having been filled with builder’s waste, other times they’re never seen again.

“Unfortunately, we do have to charge for replacements as, otherwise, the problem would be even worse than it is now.”

She added that the best way to prevent a bin from being stolen is to label it clearly with an address.

This, she explained, will “deter thieves” and allow the council to return it to the correct home if it is found.  

Mr Bhatt has since marked his bins on all sides – “including the bottom” – but he remains unconvinced by the current system.

“The council has a duty of care to the residents, but it feels as if we’re going backwards,” he said.

“On the one hand, they want you to recycle as much as possible but, if your bin goes missing, where are you supposed to take it?

“And they didn’t even deliver the bin to the right address; they tried to take it to South Harrow. It’s like we’re living in the third world, not a civilised society.”

He added that, while, above all, he just wants to see his bins remain in their rightful place, he will be keeping a close eye on where they are returned to.