The bin men in SE23 are brilliant. I never realised just how brilliant until we moved to Elmbridge who outsource their waste collection services to a vile company called veolia, who go out of their way to be unhelpful. On one occasion when we first moved I was told that if the bins were not out when the bin men were adjacent , they couldn't take the rubbish, even if I took the bin to their vehicle parked 30m away myself and hooked it onto the truck myself. I had to actually stand in front of their truck refusing to move to get them to take it and was warned they "would not be so kind next time". In the time wasted with me they could have completed our entire road twice. The Elmbridge website says that any extra card placed next to the bin and tied together with string will be collected. Tried this after Christmas and none of it was. The final straw was when they refused to empty my recycling because the bins were on the drive, adjacent to the pavement rather than on the pavement itself. I did this consciously so that my elderly neighbours did not need to walk into the road around my bins. The council website again says bins need to be on the boundary, not the pavement. I had to battle with the council for 10 days to get our now reeking rubbish collected. The bin men are rude and combative and you only get your rubbish and recycling collected on alternate weeks which is a nightmare for a large family. I'd rather torch a £20 note than give it to these guys as a christmas tip. SE23 bin men I miss thee all dearly.