More than 130 dumped shopping trolleys are to be crushed after local supermarkets failed to collect them. Since Harlow Council introduced a £70 charge to shop owners to cover the costs of collecting, storing and disposing of their dumped trolleys, nearly 250 trolleys have been collected and stored by council partner Kier Harlow.

When the trolley has been collected, the council keeps it for six weeks; during that time the owner can have it back if they pay the £70 charge for each trolley. Cllr Eleanor Macy says:

"We need to see more action from local stores as we're still collecting a large number of dumped trolleys from the town's streets. There are systems and processes stores can introduce to stop the problem but at the moment these are not in place in many cases. Whilst some stores have paid for the return of their trolleys, some retailers have ignored the requests for payment, and the council is now entitled to crush them."

The council will still pursue the owners for the £70 charge for the 130 trolleys being disposed of. Kier Harlow still has another 69 trolleys in store.

The council can also take action against individuals dumping trolleys. The maximum penalty is a £50,000 fine, or 12 months imprisonment if the matter goes to court. You can report dumped trolleys to Contact Harlow on 01279 446655.