OUTRAGED residents claim they are being forced to pay for rat-infested rubbish dumped in their bins by fly tippers.

Families who live in the Sovereign Vale flats in Ock Street, Abingdon, are being charged after they say “lazy” law-breakers used their waste bins as a dumping ground.

Housing association Sovereign sent out a letter warning residents they would be charged for the mess, which is attracting rats.

James Lysord-Burns has lived in one of the flats with his partner Jason, for 14 years.

The 52-year-old said the rubbish, which is piled by the flats’ bin area in the car park, is starting to smell.

He said: “There has been a major build-up of rubbish, we can’t get to the bins. People are dumping rubbish, which is overflowing because the binmen are refusing to collect it.

“It’s disgusting, especially when you’re sat on the balcony and see what you think is a cat running around – but then realise it’s a rat with a long tail. There are vermin the size of cats.

“The bins are not lockable. It’s easy for people to get access.”

At the start of December, Sovereign’s environmental team sent him a letter saying residents would be penalised with service charges as rubbish had been put in the wrong bins.

Mr Lysord-Burns’ neighbour Ashley, who preferred not to use her last name, lives in the flats with her partner and their two-year-old son.

The 22-year-old said: “We wouldn’t dump rubbish outside our own doorstep. I get rats coming onto my balcony because I am on the ground floor. I can’t let my son out there to play.”

Holly Barrett, 33, has the same problem with her three-year-old daughter Mimi.

She said: “We can see the rats running, she doesn’t go and play outside.

“People come round in cars and think they can use our bins.

“It’s laziness. People come here instead of going five minutes up the road to the tip in Drayton.

“It’s not just rubbish, it’s washing machines, fridges and sofas.”

She said the council filled eight skips last time it came to clear the bins. A spokesperson for Sovereign said: “We are aware of, and are dealing with, issues being experienced with the bin storage area at Ock Street.

“We’re liaising with Biffa to investigate and we’ll be working with the local authority to find a practical longer term solution. In the meantime, our contractor has been asked to remove some of the rubbish.”

Vale of White Horse District Council, which is responsible for collecting the waste, said: “We were made aware of a significant build-up of rubbish around the bins, which was preventing our waste crews from accessing the site. We can only remove fly tips from public land. However we will investigate each instance and won’t hesitate to prosecute.”