Greyhound Waste Thread - MOD WARNING in Post 1

goz83

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tHB & MarkMc

I received a letter from greyhound, which seemed like a very decent letter adverising a reduction in the annual charge (€100) by up to 50% if the annual charge of €59.95 was paid before end of November and a €10 credit would be applied to account.

It spoke of 4 plans, which I will detail at the end of the post, but to cut the post to the point, it recommended that I be on plan 1, which is the €59.95 charge and a charge per lift (weight restricted) per bin. I got on the phone to clarify what charges would actually apply if I exceeded the 25kg (black bin) weight limit and it was confirmed at €0.33 per additional kilo. The scary part is that they "recommended" i stay on plan 1, which was automatically selected. It said "we've analysed the amount of waste that you have generated through your account number 00000000 with greyhound to date, and we have identified the plan for which, we believe, best suits your requirements."

After getting on the phone with a greyhound rep (who, by the way was very helpful), I realised that option one, based only on the last 3 Black bin lifts (266 kilos in 3 lifts) would have cost well over €1000 per year, without considering the Brown bin charges. We usually have the brown bin about 70% full.

How on earth did they do their analysis if the recommended plan is costing us so much? Plan 2 and 3 offer an unlimited weight for just €348 and €330 respectively, the former being a monthly payment option and the latter being an upfront fee, which actually becomes €302.50 if paid before November ends.

So Here Are The Plans: (green bin is free with all plans)

Plan 1 Pay Per Lift
# €59.95 annual charge
# Black Bin €6.50 per lift*
# Brown Bin €3.60 per lift*
* = €0.33 for each kilo over 25kg black bin and €0.24 for each kilo over 20kg brown bin.

Plan 2 Pay Per Month
# No upfront fee.
#€29 per month
# covers collection of a 2nd black bin if you have one
# No weight restriction

Plan 3 Annual Fixed (suits us best as a 3 adult, 3 kid and some pets home)
#€330 upfront
# Same as plan 2, but without the monthly fees.

Plan 4 Pay By Weight
# €100 Annual Service Charge
# Black bin charge of €0.26 per kilo
# Brown bin charge of €0.19 per kilo
# No lift fees.

To change your plan, or get information on your account, you'll need to get in touch with greyhound customer care.

uck51js9zml2yt

We got similar but no annual plan.
I called today asking why they thought I needed 2 black bins per lift for 29 pm
hopefully Will get a call back tomorrow.

was onto oxygen. 220 for the year.

just need to get the money on my account credited back to my card.

wonder how difficult that Will be!

goz83

I reckon we will be swithing. We currently spend about €10 per month with Greyhound, because we don't put the bins out much. So thats about €220 per year with the standing charge. €330 is now the cheapest with Greyhound.

goz83

I reckon we will be swithing. We currently spend about €10 per month with Greyhound, because we don't put the bins out much. So thats about €220 per year with the standing charge. €330 is now the cheapest with Greyhound.

deandean

I have the document here in front of me, it says

"Black bin waste over 25kg charged at .33c per kilo...."

That is 0.33 cent per kilo, not €0.33 (which is 33c) per kilo.

Greyhound should stick with their published prices. OP have you actually phoned them to ask their pay-by-weight pricing? Sounds to me like they are trying to rip you off there charging you 100 times what they have quoted.

goz83

deandean wrote: »

I have the document here in front of me, it says

"Black bin waste over 25kg charged at .33c per kilo...."

That is 0.33 cent per kilo, not €0.33 (which is 33c) per kilo.

Greyhound should stick with their published prices. OP have you actually phoned them to ask their pay-by-weight pricing? Sounds to me like they are trying to rip you off there charging you 100 times what they have quoted.

This is one of the reasons I rang them (3rd paragraph of OP). I also rang them at 5:55pm and the girl I spoke to also said 33c per additional kilo and not .33cent per kilo. So either the letter is correct and the two representatives I spoke to are wrong, or the letter is wrong. But I got quoted, over the phone at my previous 3 black bin lifts. The last lift was 73.5 kilos and I was told, by the first greyhound rep, that it would have cost €23 on plan 1.

goz83

Looks like I will have to ring them AGAIN tomorrow. Two phone calls and two idiots telling me that my black bin fee goes from €7 per lift to an averge of €30 per lift with no explanation. The second phone call I was speaking to a girl and I asked who analysed my bill to give me such a ridiculous recommendation, bringing my bill to around €1500 per year based on the figures given. She said I should ring customer care :eek: Is this not customer care? I asked...Yes, but this is an office in cork and we just deal with plan switching ....so she gave me a customer care number for Dublin, which I didn't see anywhere on the letter ( 1890 923 323 )

It makes much more sense if it is .33c but the 1st rep said it was 33 cent per extra kilo on black bins and the second rep said "yeah, your lifts are quite heavy, so your bills would be really expensive." This indirectly confirmed whatthe 1st rep said. I didn't catch their names...they seem to mutter their names at the start of the call.

deandean

I phoned them at 5:40 today, no answer either. Now ya have ME worried.

goz83

deandean wrote: »

I phoned them at 5:40 today, no answer either. Now ya have ME worried.

kravmaga

goz83 wrote: »

I received a letter from greyhound, which seemed like a very decent letter adverising a reduction in the annual charge (€100) by up to 50% if the annual charge of €59.95 was paid before end of November and a €10 credit would be applied to account.

It spoke of 4 plans, which I will detail at the end of the post, but to cut the post to the point, it recommended that I be on plan 1, which is the €59.95 charge and a charge per lift (weight restricted) per bin. I got on the phone to clarify what charges would actually apply if I exceeded the 25kg (black bin) weight limit and it was confirmed at €0.33 per additional kilo. The scary part is that they "recommended" i stay on plan 1, which was automatically selected. It said "we've analysed the amount of waste that you have generated through your account number 00000000 with greyhound to date, and we have identified the plan for which, we believe, best suits your requirements."

After getting on the phone with a greyhound rep (who, by the way was very helpful), I realised that option one, based only on the last 3 Black bin lifts (266 kilos in 3 lifts) would have cost well over €1000 per year, without considering the Brown bin charges. We usually have the brown bin about 70% full.

How on earth did they do their analysis if the recommended plan is costing us so much? Plan 2 and 3 offer an unlimited weight for just €348 and €330 respectively, the former being a monthly payment option and the latter being an upfront fee, which actually becomes €302.50 if paid before November ends.

So Here Are The Plans: (green bin is free with all plans)

Plan 1 Pay Per Lift
# €59.95 annual charge
# Black Bin €6.50 per lift*
# Brown Bin €3.60 per lift*
* = €0.33 for each kilo over 25kg black bin and €0.24 for each kilo over 20kg brown bin.

Plan 2 Pay Per Month
# No upfront fee.
#€29 per month
# covers collection of a 2nd black bin if you have one
# No weight restriction

Plan 3 Annual Fixed (suits us best as a 3 adult, 3 kid and some pets home)
#€330 upfront
# Same as plan 2, but without the monthly fees.

Plan 4 Pay By Weight
# €100 Annual Service Charge
# Black bin charge of €0.26 per kilo
# Brown bin charge of €0.19 per kilo
# No lift fees.

To change your plan, or get information on your account, you'll need to get in touch with greyhound customer care.

---

I need to correct your figures on Plan 2 and Plan 3

Plan 2 - It is €19 per month and not €29 as you have quoted.

Plan 3 - €250 is the up front fee and not €330 as you have quoted.

Where are you getting your numbers from by the way?

I dont work for Greyhound.

I have a hard copy of the info leaflet in front of me dated 5th October 2012.

uck51js9zml2yt

kravmaga wrote: »

---

I need to correct your figures on Plan 2 and Plan 3

Plan 2 - It is €19 per month and not €29 as you have quoted.

Plan 3 - €250 is the up front fee and not €330 as you have quoted.

Where are you getting your numbers from by the way?

I dont work for Greyhound.

I have a hard copy of the info leaflet in front of me dated 5th October 2012.

Everyones letter is different.

quaalude

The letters are different alright.
There's thread about it over in Bargain Alerts - there are a few scans of the letters from different people on there: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056765023

John Mason

Why is anyone still with this company

surely they cant get away with charging different prices in different areas?

Gasherbraun

We had a similar letter from Greyhound offering three plans (but different figures -in South Dublin county) telling us we were being placed on a particular plan since it offered the 'best value for us' according to Greyhound.

It did not offer best value.

Anyone receiving this letter should take a few minutes to look back on the year and check costs. The plan Greyhound recommended for us would have cost us circa €80.00 more than necessary in 2013

Gloomtastic!

Has anyone calculated a saving on these new price plans or, as I suspect, it's just a clever way of disguising more price increases from Greyhound?

yelselseivad

I have just spoken to someone in Greyhound (having spend 5mins on hold via a number I have to pay for as it's not part of UPC package) to query how plan 1 offers me the best value. I was told it was the same as the plan I was on at the moment. 'Is there more than one plan available at the moment?' I asked. No was the reply. 'So is this the best plan for me to be on from 1 January? How was the decision made that Plan 1 was the one that they believed offered me the greatest benefits in terms of value for money and the number of bin lifts I needed to provide for my waste requirements' Eh - this plan is the same as the one you are on.
At the moment I have 2 black bins and to date have paid €304 and estimate I will pay another €80 to year end. I have 'gone overweight' a number of times so in calculating which option was the best needed to take this into consideration.

My estimates are Plan 1 (recommended by Greyhound) €450 minimum not allowing for overweight bins
Plan 2 €348
Plan 3 €330
Plan 4 not even going there

This is a potential difference of at least €120 so how can they possibly suggest that the dearest plan is the best option.

I did ask was Option 1 chosen for everyone but the conversation sort of came to an end. She did offer to change me over to Option 3 as she thought it would probably be cheaper. My point is - will everyone bother to check which plan is best.

uck51js9zml2yt

yelselseivad wrote: »

I have just spoken to someone in Greyhound (having spend 5mins on hold via a number I have to pay for as it's not part of UPC package) to query how plan 1 offers me the best value. I was told it was the same as the plan I was on at the moment. 'Is there more than one plan available at the moment?' I asked. No was the reply. 'So is this the best plan for me to be on from 1 January? How was the decision made that Plan 1 was the one that they believed offered me the greatest benefits in terms of value for money and the number of bin lifts I needed to provide for my waste requirements' Eh - this plan is the same as the one you are on.
At the moment I have 2 black bins and to date have paid €304 and estimate I will pay another €80 to year end. I have 'gone overweight' a number of times so in calculating which option was the best needed to take this into consideration.

My estimates are Plan 1 (recommended by Greyhound) €450 minimum not allowing for overweight bins
Plan 2 €348
Plan 3 €330
Plan 4 not even going there

This is a potential difference of at least €120 so how can they possibly suggest that the dearest plan is the best option.

I did ask was Option 1 chosen for everyone but the conversation sort of came to an end. She did offer to change me over to Option 3 as she thought it would probably be cheaper. My point is - will everyone bother to check which plan is best.

oxygen 220 for a year.

goz83

OK. I spoke with 3 different customer care people today, one being an ignorant cow by the name of Aine in the Dublin customer service office. All 5 I have spoken to confirmed that its 33 cent per additional kilo over 25 kilo on a black bin. Juliane in Cork said it was a genuine mistake and the letter should not have been sent out. I asked for a Supervisor, but Amy was in Dublin for the day and wasn't available. I'm told I'm not the first to ring about it (obviously).

If it was .33c per additional kilo, it would make absolute sense, because most bins will be 50-60kilos, bringing the weight closer to the current charge of €7. But the average bill on plan 1 is likely to go up by 300%. They are going to be in a world of sh1t come January/February because it looks like everyone is being put onto Plan 1.

Based on that assumption, they will earn about €15 extra on top of the basic lift fee for the very first lift of a black bin in January 2013, compared to this years price. It will take people a few weeks to realise their bin charges have rocketed.

edit: I've also emailed a local labour td and a finegael td in the dublin north east constituency, so we will see if anything happens with this. tbh, I am expecting more from the labour td, because he seems to be much more active in the community and won't like Greyhound ripping people off like this.

keane2097

Obviously going to change company after this utter fraud on the company's part. Recommendations in the D6 area?

quaalude

keane2097 wrote: »

Obviously going to change company after this utter fraud on the company's part. Recommendations in the D6 area?

Oxigen are there I'm sure - they're in Dublin 4 and offered me a good-priced alternative to Greyhound.
Their website is a bit rubbish (pardon the pun) - on some pages it mentions that every customer gets a brown bin, when they don't - the brown bin has to be specifically requested and costs a good bit extra.
So phoning them is your best bet - http://www.oxigen.ie/Contact-Us/contact-us.html

keane2097

Anyone with the letter from Greyhound in front of them know what the date that this stuff is due to come into effect on is?

I remember reading that if I didn't reply by a particular date I was essentially agreeing to the new system or something...

quaalude

keane2097 wrote: »

Anyone with the letter from Greyhound in front of them know what the date that this stuff is due to come into effect on is?

I remember reading that if I didn't reply by a particular date I was essentially agreeing to the new system or something...

Good question, the letter is clear as mud.



I was planning on using the last of my credit for the next couple of bin lifts then changing to Oxigen at, say, the start of December - so cancelling Greyhound then.

Does anyone know if that's the right way to do it?

Lawrence1895

Just wondering, what's the story about the automatic top up version, they have? Does that include the payment of the annual charge?

ranmac

deandean wrote: »

I have the document here in front of me, it says

"Black bin waste over 25kg charged at .33c per kilo...."

That is 0.33 cent per kilo, not €0.33 (which is 33c) per kilo.

Greyhound should stick with their published prices. OP have you actually phoned them to ask their pay-by-weight pricing? Sounds to me like they are trying to rip you off there charging you 100 times what they have quoted.

This is my very point. If I go with their proposal, as stated in their letter of offer, then all they can contractually charge us is as stated in their letter - .33c per kilo or approximately 303 kilo for €1.00. Surely if no one gets written confirmation otherwise then their offer, if accepted by a customer must contractually stand. A legal opinion must agree with this
interpretation

keane2097

The only thing that happens then is they change the terms of the contract to 33c and you have a second opportunity to opt out. They're not obliged to provide you a waste service indefinitely at a price that they will say is a typo.

goz83

The odd thing is that the "typo" is much closer to todays rates, when the new price is 100 times more expensive for every extra kilo.

ranmac

goz83 wrote: »

The odd thing is that the "typo" is much closer to todays rates, when the new price is 100 times more expensive for every extra kilo.

And another interesting point is that there is no reference to black bin size. For the waiver customer it states on Plan 1 that in addition to €49.95 annual charge the charge is €4.90 per lift. Is this regardless of bin size as I was thinking of downsizing my bin as I am now officially 'old' - that is an OAP - or would it be less for the smaller bin. You really have to wonder at the intelligence or indeed lack of it with the Greyhound Company in producing such a document. My next door neighbouor uses the smaller black bin

jos28

I feel we have been completely tricked by Greyhound. like a lot of people I availed of their 'special offer' recently which gave an extra €10 credit for topping up by €49. I know have a balance of €76 in my account which will not be used up by 30 Nov. Based on the Plan 1 that they stuck me on, my lifts would cost approx €17 plus the annual fee of €59.95 !!!
If I cancel my account I will lose money but I am so p1ssed off that I am not staying with Greyhound. Any suggestions for Dublin 3 ??
Has anyone been on to Joe Duffy about this ?

Meauldsegosha

I rang greyhound yesterday to ask what weight my last three bins lifts were and they couldn't tell me because I haven't put my bin out since they started weighting them. The girl on the phone said the average weight of a full bin is approx 25kg - 30kg. I suspect she was lying to me, could anyone enlighten me as to the approx weight of a full bin. Thanks.

goz83

A far as i know, Oxigen cover all of Dublin, but don't quote me on that. Howeve, we should be given reasonable prices. Greyhound got the lions share when they took over from DCC, but why are they so much more expensive and why are the prices so varied? I have seen price differences already of 100% more in my area, but across the road, it's half the price.

I wrote to Minister Phil Hogan about this. My letter below.

Dear Minister Hogan,

I would like to make you aware of a very big problem, which I believe will cause great hardship and anger at the hands of Greyhound Recycling, which as you know, took over from DCC this year. Greyhound have introduced new pricing for next year, which is very misleading and breaches advertising standards. Quite simply, the prices they advertise in a letter sent to all their customers in incorrect. They also offer massively different prices for different areas. I live in Donaghmede, Dublin 13 and the annual fee is €330, but someone who lives less than 50 metres away from me in Clongriffin, Dublin 13 only pays €160 for the annual fee. I have informed my local FG TD, Terence Flanagan about this, but I want to inform you about it, because this is your area of responsibility as minister for the environment, so far as I can tell. Terence noted the difference in price and said he would write to Greyhound about this. The biggest problem is that the advertised price is not the actual price they are charging for anything over 25 kilos in a black bin, they are charging 33 cent per kilo, but they advertised .33c per kilo, which would actually fall in line with the current pricing structure. Paying 100 times the advertised price is unacceptable, to put it kindly. I am concened for those who will be oblivious to this, especially the elderly.

I would like to draw your attention to a thread I started on www.Boards.ie which is linked below. You may have to paste the address into your browser for access. The thread is quite short, but it will give you a good understanding of what is happening. There is also a "mega-thread" on the same forum about greyhound, which gives some more insight if you scroll to the last few pages. Unless something is done about this, people will see their top up accounts drained in a single bin left and many bins will be left uncollected at the end of January. Aside from this, bin charges will raise from an average of €350 per year to over €1000 per year by my simple estimation.

Regards,

My Name
FG Supporter

www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=81274635

I received a reply from Phil Hogans secretary, which is a start, but I hope to see something done about this. The reply is below.

Dear my surname,



I have been asked by Mr. Phil Hogan ,T.D., Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government to refer to your recent email in connection with

Greyhound Recycling.



A further email on this matter will issue as soon as possible.







Yours sincerely,





__________________

Senders Name

Private Secretary

goz83

Meauldsegosha wrote: »

I rang greyhound yesterday to ask what weight my last three bins lifts were and they couldn't tell me because I haven't put my bin out since they started weighting them. The girl on the phone said the average weight of a full bin is approx 25kg - 30kg. I suspect she was lying to me, could anyone enlighten me as to the approx weight of a full bin. Thanks.

Average weight of our black bins is 60-70kg. We recycle, so the organic waste is in the brown bin and the light waste is in the green bin. There are 3 adults and 3 children in our household. I would say a 30kg bin is unrealistic, unless its a single person, or a couple, who just dump all their waste into the black bin, fillingit up with bulky, but very light recyclable matter, such as boxes and plastic bottles.

We had a black bin in September weighing over 127kg.

Meauldsegosha

goz83 wrote: »

Average weight of our black bins is 60-70kg. We recycle, so the organic waste is in the brown bin and the light waste is in the green bin. There are 3 adults and 3 children in our household. I would say a 30kg bin is unrealistic, unless its a single person, or a couple, who just dump all their waste into the black bin, fillingit up with bulky, but very light recyclable matter, such as boxes and plastic bottles.

We had a black bin in September weighing over 127kg.

Thanks. There's two of us in my house but we recycle and compost. Only put the black bin out every 6 weeks.

quaalude

Meauldsegosha wrote: »

I rang greyhound yesterday to ask what weight my last three bins lifts were and they couldn't tell me because I haven't put my bin out since they started weighting them. The girl on the phone said the average weight of a full bin is approx 25kg - 30kg. I suspect she was lying to me, could anyone enlighten me as to the approx weight of a full bin. Thanks.

I put out a really full black bin this week, according to my bin lift history on Greyhound.ie it was 33.5KG.

alexonhisown

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/1008/1224325015557.html

I dont really understand their reasoning for offering people in different areas different charges. I currently put my black bin out every 4-6 weeks.

One of the plans I was offered was 175 annualy (160.40 if paid by a certain date). Probably because I dont put my bin out very often.

I have now decided to go with the annual plan for 160, so I will now put my bin out as often as I like.

But yet someone that is currently puttiing their bin out every 2 weeks was probably offered the yearly plan for a lot more than 160. It doesnt make a lot of sense.

ranmac

goz83 wrote: »

Average weight of our black bins is 60-70kg. We recycle, so the organic waste is in the brown bin and the light waste is in the green bin. There are 3 adults and 3 children in our household. I would say a 30kg bin is unrealistic, unless its a single person, or a couple, who just dump all their waste into the black bin, fillingit up with bulky, but very light recyclable matter, such as boxes and plastic bottles.

We had a black bin in September weighing over 127kg.

Thats exactly to info I was looking for. So, on that basis, for me a 70 kg bin would cost €4.90 for the first 25 kg plus 45 kg at €0.33 (if what I am told is a 'typo' error) - total cost for my bin €19.75. Just what I am afraid of

goz83

ranmac wrote: »

Thats exactly to info I was looking for. So, on that basis, for me a 70 kg bin would cost €4.90 for the first 25 kg plus 45 kg at €0.33 (if what I am told is a 'typo' error) - total cost for my bin €19.75. Just what I am afraid of

No. The first 25kg is a set €6.50 for the black bin and then 33cent per kilo eafter. That means:

70kg full weight.
25kg charged at €6.50
45kg overweight at 33cent per kg = €14.85

€6.50 + €14.85 = €21.35


The current charge is €7 per black bin lift, regardless of weight, so your charge is more than 3 times the price you're paying now if you use Plan 1.

So if you put out 26 black bins per year, your 2012 charge would be €182 for lifts, plus €100 annual fee = €282
In 2013, on Plan 1 (using the charges in my area) you pay €59.95 plus €555.10 (based on 70kg weight) = €615.05

That's before taking brown bin into account.

mystic

ranmac wrote: »

And another interesting point is that there is no reference to black bin size. For the waiver customer it states on Plan 1 that in addition to €49.95 annual charge the charge is €4.90 per lift. Is this regardless of bin size as I was thinking of downsizing my bin as I am now officially 'old' - that is an OAP - or would it be less for the smaller bin. You really have to wonder at the intelligence or indeed lack of it with the Greyhound Company in producing such a document. My next door neighbouor uses the smaller black bin

I'm not on a waiver, so charges might be different.

Anyway, I got the letter that indicated that I should be on Plan 1. (59.95) plus a set charge for every collection but the devil is in the detail. I rang Greyhound immediately as I have a small black bin (140L). I only put it out twice a year because I try to recycle everything.....it's really only bags of cigarette butts that go into into the black bin (yeuchy, I know!!)

The poor guy in Greyhound had to leave me on hold for ages until he asked a supervisor. I was told that the collection charge for the smaller bin would be €4.50 (the weight of the bin in excess of 20kgs will be charged at 33 cent per kilo). I even asked how much it would be to be to replace the smaller bin with the larger one and was told €20. The same weight limit applies to a smaller bin - 20kgs.

A week later, a letter arrived that detailed the charges for the smaller black bin and it was less. I will pay €4.00 per lift for the black bin. When I looked at my account I was paying €4.20 per lift....so that's actually a reduction......or is it? I don't know what my previous black bin weighed when it was last collected....and they can't tell me because it was months ago!!!

The Brown Bin
My brown bin charges have been €2.00 per lift so far but they're going to increase to €3.60 per lift. My brown bin can be a 'heavy beast', depending on the time of the year. Obviously during the summer there would be more 'compostable waste' that goes into the brown bin but according to the Greyhound website my last brown bin collection was April 2012 and it weighed 28 kgs!!!

What I do for the brown bin is to put all biodegradable waste into marked biodegrable plastic bags rather than putting the waste directly into the brown bin.....it's cuts down on the smell!!! The 'green waste' compacts in the bag, which is placed in the bin. For example, I cut a load of branches off a tree in late summer (the amount would have filled my brown bin and my neighbours too) but I cut them up with a secateurs and filled the bag.....the volume has decreased (not sure about the weight though!!)

I also have two green bins which I fill every two weeks. It's amazing the amount of stuff that can be recycled......check your rubbish and you'll be amazed what can be recycled....even the lid from a yoghurt!!

I don't have a 'kitchen bin' in my house. I just sort through the rubbish that's generated from teenagers rooms....green, black or brown (usually gone off bananas or apples......nasty and very yeuch!!) and put the rubbish in the appropriate bin.

The way I look at waste management/recyclingcompanies is to beat them at their own game. Adhere to their rules and recycle as much as possible for free.

It's going to be difficult to estimate the weight of a bin (do they deduct the actual weight of the bin from the total weight......who knows!!) Should we all buy scales that will weigh our bins in the future (there's a business idea for somebody!!). Leaving bins out in the future will be like travelling on a well known 'Irish' air transport provider.....scales, etc.

Also, what about the security aspect. If I leave out a black bin (for example), what's to stop my neighbours or other people from dumping their rubbish into my bin.....and 'muggins' paying for it!! So, I'd be paying for their rubbish!!

I've actually seen some of my neighbours putting their rubbish in others peoples' bins....I think it was with their consent. With the new system, what's to stop people filling their neighbours bins with their own rubbish and because of the new increased charges by weight.......the registered householder will pay!!

I shall see how the new charges work out but I may be putting my fag ashes and butts in the local litter bin which most probably will be an illegal act.

Maybe I should just stop smoking!!!

alexonhisown

ranmac wrote: »

Thats exactly to info I was looking for. So, on that basis, for me a 70 kg bin would cost €4.90 for the first 25 kg plus 45 kg at €0.33 (if what I am told is a 'typo' error) - total cost for my bin €19.75. Just what I am afraid of

goz83 wrote: »

Average weight of our black bins is 60-70kg. We recycle, so the organic waste is in the brown bin and the light waste is in the green bin. There are 3 adults and 3 children in our household. I would say a 30kg bin is unrealistic, unless its a single person, or a couple, who just dump all their waste into the black bin, fillingit up with bulky, but very light recyclable matter, such as boxes and plastic bottles.

We had a black bin in September weighing over 127kg.

I would worry about how accurate their weighing is. I only put the bin out every 6 weeks and it does be really full. According to them my last two black bin lifts were 28kgs and 22kgs. The bin is so heavy I can bearly move it. And apparently my last green bin was 17kgs. How is that possible.

quaalude

alexonhisown wrote: »

I would worry about how accurate their weighing is. I only put the bin out every 6 weeks and it does be really full. According to them my last two black bin lifts were 28kgs and 22kgs. The bin is so heavy I can bearly move it. And apparently my last green bin was 17kgs. How is that possible.

Same here - last time I put out my black bin, it was 10 weeks of black bin waste (we recycle and use the brown bin a lot), and it was really, really heavy - but only 33.5KG according to Greyhound.

statss

I tend to hide some of my normal rubbish underneath the cardboard/recyclebles in the green bin. They haven't done anything about it so far.

goz83

mystic wrote: »

The same weight limit applies to a smaller bin - 20kgs.

The 240L bin has a 25kg restriction, so that's 5kg in the difference.

mystic wrote: »

Maybe I should just stop smoking!!!

That would be a good idea. Filling bins with smoke butts!! That habit must be costing you a bomb. Check out the deal websites for quit smoking programs, they are always online.


The 127kg bin was quite heavy and I found it very hard to move, but in saying that, the black bin is usually that heavy (not always), so I wonder too how accurate their system is. It wouldn't matte if we all weighed our bins, Greyhound would just use their figures and would certainly ignore disputes.

MicraBoy

statss wrote: »

I tend to hide some of my normal rubbish underneath the cardboard/recyclebles in the green bin. They haven't done anything about it so far.

Well you're a proper genius aren't you. You're ruining the entire recycling effort of hundreds of people by contaminating the load.

ranmac

So does anyone know the weight of an empty 240 L black bin and does anyone have any ideas as to how to weigh a full bin

Gloomtastic!

ranmac wrote: »

So does anyone know the weight of an empty 240 L black bin and does anyone have any ideas as to how to weigh a full bin

If you go on to their website and check your account, the weight of your bins already collected should be there. Having said that, ours haven't been weighed since they started.

goz83

I would not be at all surprised if they included the weight of the empty bin too. God forbid them finding a way to judge the difference between a 140, or 240 litre bin. I reckon they just weigh the whole lot.

jos28

Just been onto Greyhound to verify the details and it is exactly as posters are saying. Luckily I have until 1st Jan to use up the balance in my account. I think I will switch to Ozo after that. Just been onto them and they have an offer of €220.50 per year for 26 lifts per bin. They don't offer a brown bin service yet but that does not really bother me. Based on the fact that the green bin is free, the Ozo rates work out at €8.46 per black bin lift with no weight restrictions. They offer fortnightly collections with both bins collected on the same day.

Emma1980

was onto them over the last couple of days, unbeliveably unhelpful and actually agreed with me that the suggested plan 1 would actually cost me a few hundred a year more than plan 2 would!!! unreal to say the least!! anyway, have set up on plan 2 with them (purely because i have 60euro credit on my account) and will pay 19euro per month with no weight restrictions and no annual charge.

JuliusCaesar

Couldn't get any useful information from Greyhound as they haven't been weighing bins in my (inner city Dublin) area!

I put the bins out on average once a month. The brown bin can be heavy depending on the time of year, but the black bin is usually very light as it just gets stuff that can't be recycled, like plastic bags and packets.

hitbit

kravmaga wrote: »

---

I need to correct your figures on Plan 2 and Plan 3

Plan 2 - It is €19 per month and not €29 as you have quoted.

Plan 3 - €250 is the up front fee and not €330 as you have quoted.

Where are you getting your numbers from by the way?

I dont work for Greyhound.

I have a hard copy of the info leaflet in front of me dated 5th October 2012.

Hi,

Sorry but you are incorrect regarding the excess kilo charges. The correct charges on Plan 1 are Black/Grey bin 33 cent per kilo over 25 kilos Brown bin 24 cent per kilo over 20 kilos. I have attached the official advertisement from Greyhound. As they did to many others Greyhound have suggested I opt for Plan I. I believe they are being very clever indeed, and I suspect less than open in that they are well aware very many people will regularly exceed the kilo allowance and Greyhound will make a mint to say the least. I am concerned, have mailed them and am awaiting a reply,as to whether the weighting equipment on their vehicles is to subject to inspection and certification by any statutory body so as to ensure excess weights are calculated and charged correctly. After all I like most people have no way of weighting my bin prior to presenting it for collection. Neither do I have any way of disputing any excess claimed and charged by Greyhound which means I am at the mercy of Greyhound who could apply any charge they feel like. This is improper and in my opinion Greyhound should not be allowed introduce this system until such time as their customers are protected from incorrect weight calculation and thus overcharging. Perhaps this is a matter for Dublin City Council who came to in my opinion a somewhat dubious and secretive arrangement with Greyhound. Other interested providers seemed to have been swept aside. I wonder why.
Some have mentioned Oxigen and their €240.00 per annum offer. It is important to note that this does not include collection of a Brown bin. Should you require Oxigen to collect a Brown bin their charges are €12.00 yes €12.00 per lift with a requirement that you pay for 3 lifts in advance. Should you happen to reside in the Ballymount area of Dublin you would benefit from their provision of free Brown waste 20kg collection bags which you can bring to their Ballymount facility and exchange for a bag of fertilizer ( you would need to verify if there is a charge for this ).
On face value it seems the best offer from Greyhound is Plan 2 €29.00 per month €348.00 per year Black + Brown bin No excess. While slightly more expensive than than Plan 3 Black + Brown bin No excess €330.00 per year, Payment In Advance it offers much better protection in the event of Greyhound failing as a business and or suffering from industrial action as in the first scenario you could suffer a maximum loss of €29.00 in the second you could simply stop the direct debit to Greyhound and use the funds to pay another provider.
On a point of interest many I understand that many people try to leave their bin out monthly rather than fortnightly in an effort to keep costs down. Greyhound have advised me that they have set the maximum weights of 25kg Black and 20 kg Brown as this is the average waste per fortnight generated by the average household as calculated by the Environmental Protection Agency. ( I wonder how they came to this conclusion ) as I have never seen them in my estate nor have they ever communicated with myself nor any of my neighbours, family, associates and or work colleagues. Perhaps their assessment is based upon figures provided by Greyhound themselves. So back to the point. Given that the EPA calculate a Black bin will contain 25kg each fortnight and a Black bin lifts costs €6.50 + say €30.00 of the annual service charge (leaving the other €30 for the Brown bin). This amounts to €1.30 + the €6.50 lift charge a total of €7.80 to have a Black bin lifted. Those who skip a lift @ 25kg would present a bin weighting 50kg for collection an excess of 25kg @ 33cent per kg and excess charge of €8.25 + their lift charge of €7.80 making a final total of of €16.05 per month as against 2 X €7.80 a total of €15.60 where the bin is presented every fortnight weighting 25 kg as determined by the EPA. Brown bins would be similarly affected. I suggest this new pricing structure is designed to prevent hard pressed home owners / tenants attempting to make savings by presenting bins monthly rather than fortnightly. Just look to the difference of 45cent and I feel my point is proven. I am amazed at the EPA,s calculations of 25kg for a Black bin and 20kg for a Brown bin. Is it blatantly obvious that the average family would generate far more Black than Brown waste, at least twice as much so I believe the maximum weight of the Black bin should be increased to 50kg before excess charges apply. I honestly believe we are being screwed here bigtime and suggest all who read this post go kicking and screaming to their local representatives. Greyhound a global conglomerate supposedly got this contract on the basis that they could provide it cheaper than the local authorities. I do not believe this for one minute. If paid these charges Dublin City Council could well provide this service and in doing so create more jobs. Final word on this if you elect to stay with Greyhound the best option is €29.00 per month no excess.
Ps I am going to ask if they will provide me with this second Black bin free. After all there's no point in offering to lift a second bin free of charge if I don't have one.

Hitbit

Citizen victim of the most corrupt political and financial system in the free world.

goz83

I received a letter today from Terence Flanagan TD (FG) with a response from Greyhound Recycling regarding my complaint. I have responded to Terence, thanking him, but the Greyhound reply is less than satisfactory. I have pasted the whole email below, omitting only my name. The Greyhound response has been split into single line statements and is in bold font. The opening and closing formalities were not included, as they were not relevant to the subject. Email reply to follow:


Dear Terence,


First of all, let me thank you for making contact with Greyhound Recycling on my behalf. You should know that I contacted Tommy Broughan (Labour) a day or so after contacting you. However, you were the first public figure I contacted and you responded, where the other TD did not, so I appreciate that a great deal. I did also contact Minister Hogan, but I only received a reply from his office to acknowledge receipt of my email and have received no reply since then. Cllr Brabazon was also recently informed and has sent a letter response with interest in dealing with the matter in a public way. I have expressed interest, if necessary in speaking with the media about this issue, as it has received little attention when time is short. I would prefer I did not have to go down this route, because I would like to see the matter being dealt with properly, without the media being brought into it.


I received your letter with the Greyhound Recycling Response this morning. It is, quite frankly, a pathetic blow off response from Greyhound Recycling, with nothing being answered and much being lied about. I will cover the response, line by line, followed by my thoughts on them. I have excluded the opening greeting, as it is not material to the response.


"The options offered are relating to the usage of the bins."

It is a bin company. I did not think they were offering food delivery plans, or selling health insurance. However, this is one of only two factually correct statements.


"Each bin has a unique microchip that feeds back to our server."

This is the second correct statement, but it fails to mention that many areas and households have not been monitored by weight up to now, because many of their fleet are not equipped with the necessary hardware to take weight measurements (according to Greyhound source) and pass them along to the server. It is also not possible, or practical for people to weigh their own bins, so how are people to know if Greyhound Recycling are being honest without independent checks being carried out? If people do weigh their own bins, Greyhound still have the final say and there is nothing the customer can do about it if they disagree. On a personal note, I often bring my own bin out and the weights always feel similar. I could not give you an accurate measurement from my duty of wheeling the bins to the front of the Garden, but I would say the average weight would be 60-70kg, but according to greyhound, one bin was over 127kg. A mistake? Who knows? On the new system, I would be charged €6.50 for the first 25kg and €33.66 for the next 102kg, which is a total of €40.16 for that bin lift on the plan Greyhound recommended for me, based on their expert analysis. They also weigh by the half kilo, but they have not given any indication of how people would be charged for a half kilo. Will they be let off the 16.5cent? Will it be carried over? Will they be charged 16.5cent? Will they be charged for a full kilo?


"We believe that the selected plan is the best option for each customer."

Nonsense! This is total lies. If they believed the selected plans were the best plans for each customer, then wouldn't different customers have been placed on different plans? I have asked dozens of people about this and every single person has been placed on Plan 1, which Greyhound know is the biggest money maker for them. The vast majority of customers would go well above the restriced weights on a black bin. I would ask this question; Has any customer been placed onto any other plan without having to request it? I would doubt so. I think I will start a poll on this and report back.


"Customers have a range of different options to choose from within their plan and can make a different choice at any time throughout the year."

Customers do have different plans to choose from, but variety isn't a word I wuld use here. My household was offered 4 different Plans. My current end of year projection for domestic waste is costing just under €300. With the plan Greyhound Recycling recommended (PLAN 1) my annual spend would be in excess of €1000. This is not my figure. This was from the mouth of the first Greyhound representave I spoke to when I first rang about the .33c blunder, which hasn't been detailed in their response at all, very conveniently. I would not imagine it being easy for a customer being able to switch from certain plans throughout the year, but it's not a simple point to argue, so I will forego on that one.


"Different plans do no relate to different areas."

Untrue. As mentioned in my original letter; the good people of clongriffin, Dublin 13 seem to be getting their waste collected at nearly half the cost of those of us literally across the road. I know that a number of different price plans are being offered to different customers in different areas of Dublin. Greyhound denied this when last I spoke to them. The representative kept spouting different plans, saying I should choose the one-off €330, which would be very difficult for most of us at this time of year. The annual upfront fee for someone living in Grange Abbey is €330, or €29 per month (€348 annually). The annual upfront fee for someone living in clongriffin is €175, or €15 per month (€180 annually). As you know, these communities are side by side. I do not know if all of Grange Abbey, or all of Clongriffin are being charged the same plan fees for their area, as I have not checked every single addreess of course. However, I have attached proof, which a customer in Clongriffin has kindly posted on a public forum for all to see, at my request. So, to say that prices, or plans are not related to areas is a complete lie. The first file is the cover letter with the name and address of the customer partially removed for privacy. The second file contains an image of the prices greyhound are charging that customer.


"The new choices that are being introduced include prices by weight."

These prices are misleadng and/or completely wrong. A price of .33c (one third of one cent) sits comfortably with 2012 prices after the 50cent reduction is black bin lifts. Customers would actually make a tiny saving in most cases. However, Greyhound insist that the price is actually 33cent per extra kilo, which adds several euros to the average black bin. I wonder if Greyhound could provide the average black bin weight for Dublin, or even just for my area, Grange Abbey? Based on Plan 1: If the average black bin was only 50 kilos in weight (a very conservative figure i'm sure you'll agree) then the cost for the first 25kg is €6.50 and the added cost would be €8.25, a total of €14.75.


The black bin is lifted 30 times per year (as far as I know, but i'm open to correction). Completely ignoring brown bin lifts; if the black bin is lifted 30 times per year and the weight of each bin is 50 kilos, the total annual cost, including the €59.95 upfront fee on Plan 1 is €502.45. With the weight only plan, it is €495 with no upfront fee added. That's on a very conservatively low average bin and excludes the brown bin altogether.


Greyhound have still not responded to the .33c price error. I have twice requested to speak to a supervisor. On the first occasion, the supervisor was "away in Dublin for the day". The second time, the supervisor was "at a meeting and would call me right back". One representative already said that the price was an error and that the letters should not have been sent out. I named that representative in the online forum I referred to you and I named the missing supervisor too. Unless something is done, there will be uproar next year about this. I wouldn't be surprised if the army had to be called in again to collect the bins from customers who can't, or won't pay extortionate and misleading rates, cleverly disguised in errors and half-truths, with a core of lies. If they are aiming to help customers save money, I would ask how much extra they are forecasting to raise from the average household? The response from Greyhound is total Garbage and does nothing to answer my questions. I will be taking action to alert the public in a bigger way if necessary. I will be changing to a different provider, but most people don't know the truth.


Best Regards,


Snip My Name

goz83

So I just cheked with Oxigen and they cover my area. Will be switching to them. They do quarterly charges (lifting all your bins every fortnight) at €60. Bi-annual is €120, so no saving. Annual is €220, so a saving of €20 if done annually. I was interested in the quarterly charge of €60 plus a brown bin lift cost €12 per lift, no set up fees. All bins are collected at the same time, which is great! I'm well pleased with that! It's a pet hate of mine putting the bins out, so doing it once, or twice a month instead of four, or five times a month suits me just fine. It also suits me to be saving money too and leaving the shower we're with now. Fingers crossed it all works out, but my friend has been with Oxigen since January when he refused to pay the upfront €100 service charge. What do you reckon Greyhound will say about a refund on the outstanding credit on our account? I hear they just don't do refunds.