What to do about issue with neighbor and trash?

Hi all,

I'm hoping someone will have a good suggestion about what to do about this.  We recently moved to a new flat that we really like, amazing location, lovely new flat, but we have an issue with the neighbors.  They have a baby and a toddler and they leave dirty diapers and, increasingly, other household rubbish in a plastic bag (and sometimes not) outside their door.  We HAVE to walk past this door to get to ours and this morning I stepped over several old pieces of cheese strewn across our threshold.  (This is also right next to our little area of porch so we basically can't go outside without seeing their kids' diapers.)  The communal bins are just downstairs and it wouldn't be hard for them to bring the rubbish down immediately, and I feel it's completely inappropriate for them to not keep this stuff inside their own inside bin or bring it down to the communal bin.  I can't live like this.

How to get this to stop though?  They're really unfriendly which I normally wouldn't care about but I don't think they'd even open the door if we knocked to ask them nicely to dispose of their rubbish properly.  (We knocked one day to find out where the meters are and they were home but wouldn't answer.  Also one day the guy was smoking when I came out so I nodded and said hello, and he sighed in disgust and slammed the door.)  The flats are not all owned by the same person, we let through an agency and I believe we're the only flat in this building they manage.  But might the letting agency be worth reaching out to?  They are really excellent to deal with so they might have a suggestion?  I just don't think it's fair we have to step over our neighbors' human waste to leave our home, and I'm too embarrassed by it to have anyone over.

The nuclear option is to go to Environmental Health and complain about it, especially if there's vermin attracted by the waste.

In Scotland the communal close would have a factor who's responsible for the maintenance and all, and the letting agency could contact them and complain. If you're not in Scotland, though, I'm not sure if there's an equivalent.

My suggestion would be to talk to the letting agency if you're not comfortable speaking to your neighbors yourself. They would have an idea about who they could talk to.

ETA - I agree that is totally gross and I would probably fuming if I were you. I had a similar problem in my apartment back in the US but luckily my neighbors were super nice and I could talk to them! We ended up taking turns walking each others' trash to the dumpster.

How long are they leaving the rubbish there?
Is it just put on your porch for a couple of hours or so, so that the next time one of them are going down the stairs they take it with them?

In all honesty, I'd just take their rubbish down to the bins for them, if it's bothering you. It's the simplest, and probably most effective, solution to your problem. Think of it as paying it forward. Maybe they're in a bad place right now. And it may even embarrass them in to doing it themselves.

They are leaving it for days and days. Right now it's two huge reusable shopping bags worth. I'm not picking up someone else's child's diapers either, that's not a small enough task to pay it forward esp when it's muliple times per day and they could just use a diaper genie or equivalent inside.

Maybe our flat manager can go to the lease holder for the building. I know these are leasehold flats so there must be some rule like this. I am thinking it is also a fire code violation...I know from work you can't have things blocking the only corridor out. So hopefully our agency can deal with it haha....I am guessing the lease holder is similar to what you mentioned in Scotland.

Invite them to tea. Make friends. Casually slip in the complaint.


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Maybe our flat manager can go to the lease holder for the building. I know these are leasehold flats so there must be some rule like this. I am thinking it is also a fire code violation...I know from work you can't have things blocking the only corridor out. So hopefully our agency can deal with it haha....I am guessing the lease holder is similar to what you mentioned in Scotland.

Do you mean the freeholder?

MPI, I'm just so annoyed for you about this! Bad neighbours just suck.

I think you've had a great suggestion from Brenzie in contacting environmental health. Obviously your leasing agent as you mention. I'd call the council too to see if they have any suggestions. Do you have a community police officer who might be able to have a word?

Before you go anywhere though, I would start to keep a log of the behavior so that you have some evidence to present. I'd take notes and photos of the trash and also note the attitude of the neighbors to explain why you've not been able to sort it out yourself.

Good luck!

The tea suggestion will NOT work. They will not speak to us even when we say hi on the porch. Instead they run into their flat and slam the door. Everyone else so far is really nice so obviously we got unlucky with being on the end next to only them.

Do you mean the freeholder?

Ah, yes.

We have sent an email to our manager. Going to keep environmental health in our back pocket just in case....I hadn't realized such a thing exists.

Our manager came by to look at our water heater the other day and saw some of it. Since Monday it has doubled and we mentioned that as well.

I think the pragmatic answer is to look for a new place to rent when your lease comes to an end and then put it behind you. They don't sound like the type of people who care or will change.

Perhaps get an outdoor broom and push it all up next to their door every time you go out?

Sorry you have to deal with this. 

It sounds like you haven't even had a chance to ask the neighbours not to do this.  I would say that it is within the realm of normal behaviour to leave trash outside your door until making a trip outside.  Granted it's inconsiderate to the neighbours if it smells, blocks the hallway or sits around too long.  Therefore it's also normal behaviour for the neighbours to ask that these things don't happen. 
Perhaps you could leave a nicely worded note before doing anything else so at least they've got a chance to do the right thing. 

Is a note passive aggressive or acceptable?

We moved in 2 weeks ago and are locked in for 11 and a half more months. Finding and getting a place was insanely difficult and stressful. Moving is NOT an option.

I would say that it is within the realm of normal behaviour to leave trash outside your door until making a trip outside.  Granted it's inconsiderate to the neighbours if it smells, blocks the hallway or sits around too long.  Therefore it's also normal behaviour for the neighbours to ask that these things don't happen. 

I agree with both of these points.
In my current flat, we're at the top of the house, so no one has to walk by our bin bags.  My neighbour and I (on the same landing) both leave our kitchen bin bags outside the door, on the landing, overnight a couple of times a week... just so whoever is leaving the house first takes them down to the wheelie bins.  We're both happy with that arrangement, and it doesn't impact on anyone else.

In my previous flat... I did that... once.  The guy across the landing went mental and just about banged my door down to tell me the error of my ways!  Ooopsie.   

Is a note passive aggressive or acceptable?

We moved in 2 weeks ago and are locked in for 11 and a half more months. Finding and getting a place was insanely difficult and stressful. Moving is NOT an option.

I don't think a note has to be passive aggressive, it depends on how you write it.  I would remember that it's the first time you've told them it bothers you, so keep it very light and assume they just weren't aware you are bothered. 

Moving out over this seems a bit much, after all this is pretty mild compared to the hell neighbours can inflict and you can't know until you actually move in.

Exactly, there is worse than this and movig is a huge gamble. It's just that this could lead to a HUGE vermin problem and I don't think it's unreasonable to not want to look at or smell dirty diapers! Lol