Lazy litterers caught on camera twice in a day and fined £300

The registered keeper of a car has been hit with fines totalling £300 after litter being thrown out of a window was caught on dash cams by members of the public twice in one day.

On the first occasion a food wrapper was thrown out of the window of the Mercedes by the front seat passenger in Sturry Road, Canterbury.

Later in the day, the passenger in the front seat was filmed throwing a takeaway coffee cup out of the window in Island Road, Upstreet, as seen on the video below.

A fine of £150 was issued by Canterbury City Council for both offences – just the latest in a number given out under powers which mean the registered keeper of a vehicle can be fined if rubbish is seen being thrown from their vehicle, whether they are in it or not.

Footage from dash cams and mobile phones can be used as evidence if it shows litter coming from the vehicle and the registration, and whoever filmed it has the details of when and where it took place.

Council Leader Cllr Rob Thomas said: “Litter casually flung from the windows of cars by people too lazy and selfish to wait until they can find a bin is a real problem, especially in those villages which are just the right distance from a drive-through for the food to have been eaten and the wrappings are surplus to requirements.

“These powers allow us to fine the registered keeper of a vehicle for their actions, the actions of anyone who borrows their vehicle and the passengers.

“While hitting people who litter or allow littering to be hit in the pocket is welcome, the money raised goes nowhere near the amount council taxpayers have to spend to clear up the mess or the amount of hours selfless volunteers litter pickers spend cleaning up someone else’s mess.

“Thank you to the members of the public who had the foresight to share their footage with us. We really appreciate it.”

Other incidents include: 

• The registered keeper of a vehicle was issued with a £150 penalty notice for littering after a female rear seat passenger was seen throwing a drinks can from the window in Lady Wootton’s Green, Canterbury
• The registered keeper of a vehicle was issued with a £150 penalty notice for littering after the driver of the vehicle was witnessed throwing a cigarette from the vehicle in Thornden Wood Road near Herne Bay
• The registered keeper of a vehicle was issued with a £150 penalty notice for littering after the driver of the vehicle was witnessed throwing a cigarette from the vehicle in Hackington Place, Canterbury
• The registered keeper of a vehicle was issued with a £150 penalty notice for littering after the driver of the vehicle was witnessed throwing a cigarette from the vehicle in Broad Oak Road Canterbury

Cllr Thomas added: “The habit of throwing cigarette butts out of the window is a disgusting one especially when most cars still have ashtrays which can be emptied into a bin later.

“Cigarette ends contain poisonous plastic and a cocktail of poisonous chemicals such as arsenic, lead and nicotine, which cause enormous damage once they get into the watercourse via drains.

“In hot weather when the ground is dry, discarded cigarettes can also cause devastating fires.”

If you capture footage of litter being thrown from a vehicle, please send it to streetsceneenforcement@canterbury.gov.uk.

Published: 24 July 2020