Greyhound Waste Collection

berrecka

I see that Greyhound have come to Galway. I just called them there and they do seem a good bit cheaper than their rivals.

For the pay-by-weight options:
Council - standing charge €13.25/mnth; plus 8c/kg recycling 19.c/kg landfill; 5c/kg compost
CityBin - standing charge €12/mnth; 6.5c/kg recycling; 19.5c/kg landfill; 4c/kg compost
Greyhound - standing charge €6.25/mnth 3c/kg recycling; 10/kg landfill; 2c/kg compost

It looks to be a good deal and should come in substantially cheaper (they are quoting averages of 60% cheaper than Council and 50% cheaper than CityBin) but do I recall there being big issues with their provision of services in Dublin? Would others consider the switch?

thesandeman

Would say they are only here to get revenge on City Bin who have taken a lot of their customers since they moved in to Dublin.
You can check the Greyhound/City Bin debate in the Consumer Issues and Bargain Alerts Forums.

I have just left them in Dublin.
They apparently have not recieved my cancellation yet.
So as they did not recieve my yearly standing charge.
They decided to switch me to a 19 euro a month scheme. Only notifying me about it afterwards.
So they have cleared the rest of the credit on the account.
They have also introduced a 40 euro bin removal charge. For finishing service with them.

How can trust how much a company like that will charge you. In the long run.

antoobrien

berrecka wrote: »

It looks to be a good deal and should come in substantially cheaper (they are quoting averages of 60% cheaper than Council and 50% cheaper than CityBin) but do I recall there being big issues with their provision of services in Dublin? Would others consider the switch?

I've had no problems with them in Dublin, afaik the service provision issues were people that had trouble setting up the accounts & getting wavers. I don't know anybody that had problems getting the bins lifted but I know a few people in my estate decided to go to other providers.

Interesting to see pay by weight in Galway because it's by lift in Dublin (€7 for the 240L bin, €2 for 140l compost, free recycling). Since the start of November I've paid them €30 for lifts that would have cost me about €10 in Galway at those prices.

beardybrewer

Do CityBin do a flat rate any more? If you live in a household with 4+ people the charge by weight adds up.

Usual scam that the rate will be jacked up after a year. Right now CityBin are doing a €99 for a year in Dublin. I'm paying €26.51/month for the same privlege now.

Holy crap, I'm paying 318.12 a year for fixed?

If I was paying by weight for the same month it would be: 12 + (64 * .195) + (12 * .065) + (20 * .04) = €26.06 + govt levt €3.20 + commodity levy €1.14 + VAT €4.10 = €34.50

Paying by weight with Greyhound: 6.25 + (64 * .10) + (12 * .03) + (20 * .02) = €13.41 + govt levt €3.20 + commodity levy €1.14 + VAT €2.40 = €20.15

So if every month was the same weight I could potentially save €72/year. But then they'll jack those rates just like CityBin did and I won't be able to get my fixed plan again.

Unrealistic

I'm paying a flat rate of €260 annually with Barna Waste. They have a cheaper option if you have a 120l landfill bin but we needed the 240l. We signed up two years ago and the price hasn't changed since but I just went to their site to check to see if there are better options now but they don't seem to list prices online. Is anyone currently paying them a different price for Galway city?

EDIT: Scratch that. I found they do list prices on their website if you start the sign up process and choose you area from a drop-down list. It's still €130 per six months for 240l.

inisboffin

Relatives in Dublin have had bad service with Greyhound. It seems to have improved a bit in the last week or so, but they were considering Citybin. As they are older, they decided to stay put to avoid hassle, and the Citybin offer is only for a year.

I find Citybin very reliable and courteous to deal with. They are efficient and that counts for a good bit long term, as I think overall they'll save me hassle and money.

berrecka

Yea Im inclined to go with Citybin as they are a Galway company and know they can be relied on as I know many people who use them. If it werent such a substantial difference in the cost I would not hesitate in going with them.

Im renting also. May or may not be in the property for 12 months - anyone have an idea how much each charge to end a contract within the year?

buzz11

I got a copy of their flyer in the door, will scan and post it up here later.

Prices seem very tempting but I'd be reluctant to leave Citybin (galway based and all that) for a crowd of messers like Greyhound, however its only rubbish collection, how difficult can it be?

Gambas

I won't be changing on the basis of an introductory offer designed to build market share - or more probably to try and attack Citybin for moving onto their patch in Dublin. I don't believe those prices are sustainable -ultimately they all pay the same amount at landfill, and pay the same to keep their trucks on the road.

berrecka

I have just called Greyhound again. They say there is a guarantee of these prices (as above) until 1st Feb 2014. They have also signed up to remaining 20% cheaper than current providers in Galway for 2 years thereafter. There is no contract if paying monthly. And no collection/sanitation charges should they have to take the bins away again. Sounds pretty good really - particularly as I probably/hopefully wont still be in the same rental by the end of next year.

berrecka

berrecka wrote: »

And no collection/sanitation charges should they have to take the bins away again. Sounds pretty good really - particularly as I probably/hopefully wont still be in the same rental by the end of next year.

There weren't any when I used their service either. Didn't stop them applying charges after.

If you decide to use them. I wouldn't let them have your bank details or laser card number.

fifib

anyoen know what areas of city they cover?

beardybrewer

Ah, so they offer fixed. That makes it a bit easier to compare €15 Greyhound vs €19 CityBin.

€48 / year isn't that much to quibble over, but it's annoying how current customers get treated differently to new customers. Loads of companies bank on inaction and apathy and charge existing customers higher rates.

Let's not pretend anyone gives a damn they are local; support your city council so! They were cheaper and so the whole estate went red. They're offering bloody dubs €8.25 a month for the first year and €15 thereafter. Greyhound is offering €15 today. Why should anyone pay €19?

Besides there's about 4kg of scary stuff stuck to the bottom of my brown bin. I can't think of a better way of cleaning it out than by switching and getting clean new bins!

extraice

My renewal is due this week and city bin matched the price for 1 year

sgthighway

I reckon this is an attempt to take away from City Bin. Checkout previous Customers reviews for both companies before making a decision. I am a Barna Waste Customer and cannot get City Bin but I do know City Bins Gene Brown has brought a lot of professionalism to the Irish Waste Mangement Business.
I'm a firm believe in the Term; You get what you pay for.

I'm with City bin and there's a fixed charge of €12.50 afaik plus charges which are a couple of euro a month

beardybrewer

extraice wrote: »

My renewal is due this week and city bin matched the price for 1 year

Renewal? I've been with them since the start and pay per month. I'm not aware of any renewal.

However, I have emailed them today and will let everyone know in case they offer a discount.

They should just come right out and match the price.

biko

GGUY and petey68 both banned for blatant shilling of Greyhound Bins.

ChrisMcCauley

We switched to City Bin from Greyhound last year - but they are still taking money from our bank account. They are very awkward to deal with. Having had them for a year, I really could not recommend them to anyone. I'll have to wait and see if City Bin keep up the good job they've been doing so far.

Chris

ethernet

If they're anything like they are in Dublin, then avoid. Expect awful customer server - it's impossible to speak to anyone on the phone without being on hold for 20-30 minutes. Also expect your bins not to be collected from time to time. Nightmare.

beardybrewer

I think City Bin service is very good (as was the council which for me was since 05 until City Bin arrived on the scene).

I had one issue with them when my credit card expired and they simply left my bins on the curb. However they remedied it professionally and picked up specially for me the next day.

It still ticks me off they're offering great discounts to dubs and not us. Also they don't appear to offer their fixed rate €19 monthly to new (or returning) customers. The flat rate saves me significantly in our full family household. For €4 extra monthly I can afford to wait and see what the rest of the estate does first.

Sunset V

First time poster, long time lurker but saw a piece in paper today that enraged me. My Ma has been living in galway since 2009, used the council and citybins lads since then but why would anyone switch to greyhond when this happens...

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2013/0131/1224329470872.html

shyster's and cowboy's. Competition is the best thing for galway comrades but not so sure about this.

beardybrewer

I promised to report what CityBin response to why I should stay when they offer lower rates to Dubs and this new lot are cheaper.

CityBin wrote:

We have brought back our fixed option of €19.08 per month (€229 per year) with all taxes and levies included in this so if you want to change over to this option it would save you €88 euros on last year’s bill.

It’s been our practise over the years to recommend the best option to our customers by analysing their account (weights and so forth).

Feel free to let people know that all they need to do is freephone or email us.

I signed up on their fixed rate when they first entered the market. At some point these levies and VAT was tacked on.

So the difference is my fixed rate is the same but the levies and VAT become inclusive to the €19 monthly fee = €229 a year.



I wonder if Greyhound excludes levies and tax from their flat rate. I would assume they are excluded possibly making CityBin the best deal in town again.

buzz11

I'm also a Citybin customer and called them today to say I was tempted by the greyhound offer and what could they do.

The citybin guy on the phone was very negative towards greyhound and basically slated them, referring some sort of court case about illegal dumping and hidden charges etc etc...

I think it was very bad form that all the could do was slag off the new competition, isn't this what happened to them when they started out? (If I remember correctly, they were accused of not fully recycling the waste)

Anyhow Citybin needs to grow up and match the competition head on with their pricing, not get into a slagging match over who does what.....cos guess what I don't care, its rubbish collection not rocket science, just collect it at the most competitive price.

Storm 10

Galway City Council announced before Christmas that they were bringing down their refuse charges this year, just got a letter from them saying that my new charge for the year will be 229 for all bins, great value

beardybrewer

Remember when CityBin entered the market and the council cried about how they still needed to service rural areas that CityBin wouldn't bother with? They complained that CityBin was stealing their "cash cow"... us! And the fact is they still have to go out of their way to service my estate even though 80% switched to CityBin to save money.

Funny that they finally figure out years later that it's better to compete. I bet there is some guy poor public servant who suggested competing head-on day 1 and they just finally got through the red tape.

Unrealistic

newkie wrote: »

Remember when CityBin entered the market and the council cried about how they still needed to service rural areas that CityBin wouldn't bother with? They complained that CityBin was stealing their "cash cow"... us! And the fact is they still have to go out of their way to service my estate even though 80% switched to CityBin to save money.

Funny that they finally figure out years later that it's better to compete. I bet there is some guy poor public servant who suggested competing head-on day 1 and they just finally got through the red tape.

The Council don't do themselves any favours. When I moved into a rental house in Galway the Council would only provide me with bins if I had the landlord sign the form. This was awkward because the landlord was living in another part of the country. It was also awkward because the Council wanted the form to by physically delivered to them. And on top of that I found it insulting that they would not consider me responsible enough to sign up for bins in my own right just because I was renting. They could just as easily rely on a direct debit or credit card authorisation to cover themselves but the choose to make it difficult for potential customers instead.

CityBin didn't serve my area, which was disappointing because anyone I know who uses them is happy with their service. So I was stuck with Barna Waste but they have been fine. I was able to set things up over the phone and had bins delivered within 48 hours. So when we bought our own place shortly after that I just took my Barna Waste bins with me and transferred the account to the new address and didn't even consider going back to the Council

Gambas

buzz11 wrote: »

I'm also a Citybin customer and called them today to say I was tempted by the greyhound offer and what could they do.

The citybin guy on the phone was very negative towards greyhound and basically slated them, referring some sort of court case about illegal dumping and hidden charges etc etc...

I think it was very bad form that all the could do was slag off the new competition, isn't this what happened to them when they started out? (If I remember correctly, they were accused of not fully recycling the waste)

Anyhow Citybin needs to grow up and match the competition head on with their pricing, not get into a slagging match over who does what.....cos guess what I don't care, its rubbish collection not rocket science, just collect it at the most competitive price.

If you think short term pricing is the only factor, then your decision is made.

Given Greyhounds reputation, (and not something CityBin told me over the phone), I'll waiting a while before switching to them.

I've been with Barna, Council and CityBin, and in terms of quality of service, CityBin are the by far the best IMO. Not a lot wrong with Barna either in my experience other than they didn't collect on Bank Holiday Mondays, - but on the preceding Saturday, which was easy to miss.

Finally, you seem to be mistaking Greyhounds introductory offer with a long term sustainable rate. Lets wait until next year to see what they are charging.

tenacious-me

Unrealistic wrote: »

The Council don't do themselves any favours. When I moved into a rental house in Galway the Council would only provide me with bins if I had the landlord sign the form. This was awkward because the landlord was living in another part of the country. It was also awkward because the Council wanted the form to by physically delivered to them. And on top of that I found it insulting that they would not consider me responsible enough to sign up for bins in my own right just because I was renting. They could just as easily rely on a direct debit or credit card authorisation to cover themselves but the choose to make it difficult for potential customers instead.

We moved into rented accommodation where the previous tenants had the council bins, we signed up for city bin and tried to get the council bins removed. Turns out they need a written letter from the landlord (who lives in a foreign country) and the only thing they will do over the phone is send out a letter to the landlord to ask him to send them a letter.
So we're stuck with six bins out the front with the council bins half full of rubbish from previous tenants -.-

sgthighway

tenacious-me wrote: »

We moved into rented accommodation where the previous tenants had the council bins, we signed up for city bin and tried to get the council bins removed. Turns out they need a written letter from the landlord (who lives in a foreign country) and the only thing they will do over the phone is send out a letter to the landlord to ask him to send them a letter.
So we're stuck with six bins out the front with the council bins half full of rubbish from previous tenants -.-

Report the City Council to the Litter Warden. Do it in writing or email. Deny ownership of those bins dumped outside your house.

Macker73

For anyone in Galway this is worth a read


http://galwayindependent.com/stories/item/5890/2013-7/City-Bin-Co-to-change-contracts-following-NCA-review

thesandeman

Macker73 wrote: »

For anyone in Galway this is worth a read


http://galwayindependent.com/stories/item/5890/2013-7/City-Bin-Co-to-change-contracts-following-NCA-review

Fair play to City Bin for taking it on board immediately. I bet your company wouldn't be so quick off the mark.

GalwayGaillimh

City Bin are great , don't think I would change even for a lower price

d-gal

Macker73 wrote: »

For anyone in Galway this is worth a read


http://galwayindependent.com/stories/item/5890/2013-7/City-Bin-Co-to-change-contracts-following-NCA-review

Greyhound Troll troll troll, why don't you go try and petrol bomb some more city bin trucks!

biko

Macker73 wrote: »

For anyone in Galway this is worth a readhttp://galwayindependent.com/stories/item/5890/2013-7/City-Bin-Co-to-change-contracts-following-NCA-review

Galway-based waste collection company The City Bin Co. has agreed to make changes to its customer contracts, after the National Consumer Agency found that some of the terms were “unfair”.

Tbh, CityBin seems miles ahead of Greyhound when GH attracts attention like this:

Up to 18,000 homes face the prospect of not having their rubbish collected by Greyhound this week as the Taoiseach urged the company to show some flexibility.

Even the Taoiseach has had to step in to negotiate :eek:

Greyhound is set to impose full charges on Dublin's poorest and elderly residents.

http://www.herald.ie/news/greyhound-bins-boss-parties-as-elderly-hit-with-charges-28001117.html

Macker73

Posting a true article is hardly trolling. So far Greyhound, Panda & City Bin have all agreed to change their terms and conditions. See the NCA web site yourself.

You would want to more careful who you accuse of terrorist activity.

This is an information sharing platform and thats what I am doing !!!

inisboffin

Macker73 wrote: »

Posting a true article is hardly trolling. So far Greyhound, Panda & City Bin have all agreed to change their terms and conditions. See the NCA web site yourself.

You would want to more careful who you accuse of terrorist activity.

This is an information sharing platform and thats what I am doing !!!

In fairness when someone starts a brand new account to post negative comments about a business in two different fora, it looks a bit suspicious...

Zzippy

Have always had nothing but excellent service from Citybin, and after hearing stories about Greyhound's customer service, as well as hearing a bit more than can be reported in the media or posted online about the truck-burning incident, I think I'll be staying with Citybin.

TheRealSquishy

Living in menlo and just had a fella call to the door from greyhound. First month is free and then 15 a month after that. Signed up and he said you just pay at the post office but didn't give me any details or anything to pay with. Moving out in 3 months anyway but it seems a bit sketchy to me now thinking back

redbeaard

Please avoid this crowd of crooks at all cost. This is my personal experience.

Since Greyhound took over from Dublin Waste they now charge 50% more (last year, that's going to double this year).
They pick up the bins half as often, once a fortnight compared to weekly.
They only reply so some emails and that takes 3 working days for the simplest response.
Their website is a farce, they obviously don't want to share your account information with you (try deciphering how much you paid for what).
They introduced new "Options" payment schemes - there is no, and I mean no, mention of these anywhere on their site.
The "Option" you were automatically given if you did not reply to their letter in time includes paying by weight if you go over a limit, this was hidden in the fine print.
They won't provide me with a brown bin so therefor my black bin goes over weight constantly.

And last but not least they won the contract in dubious circumstances http://www.politicalworld.org/archive/index.php/t-11211.html
and their owners, in 2010, transferred their shares in the companies to limited liability companies in the Isle of Man, so it is not an Irish company and also dose not have to issue accounts so we can not see what kind of profits they make.

antoobrien

redbeaard wrote: »

Since Greyhound took over from Dublin Waste they now charge 50% more (last year, that's going to double this year).

This is wrong the price has gone up €1 per lift.

redbeaard wrote: »

They pick up the bins half as often, once a fortnight compared to weekly.

Again wrong their schedule is the same as DCC used to, except they may have hcnaged the day (which they did in my area).

redbeaard wrote: »

They only reply so some emails and that takes 3 working days for the simplest response.

Again I got quicker responses than this, though such things can depend on how busy the contact center is.

redbeaard wrote: »

Their website is a farce, they obviously don't want to share your account information with you (try deciphering how much you paid for what).

I'd say your problem is with the english language then. Here's a screenshot of my greyhound account.

redbeaard wrote: »

They won't provide me with a brown bin so therefor my black bin goes over weight constantly.

Email/ring them and ask for one delivered, they had no problem getting me a green bin

redbeaard wrote: »

their owners, in 2010, transferred their shares in the companies to limited liability companies in the Isle of Man, so it is not an Irish company and also dose not have to issue accounts so we can not see what kind of profits they make.

While slightly distasteful, there's nothing unusual with that.

redbeaard

Like I said in the first line this is my experience, you may have different.

This is wrong the price has gone up €1 per lift.

Apon further inspection of the actual charges the 50% is way off for this year so I like to retract that statement. (There are either some other charges apart from subscription and lifts that I am not aware of or a mistake has been made with my account but I am dealing with that presently so I can't stand by 50%).

Again wrong their schedule is the same as DCC used to, except they may have hcnaged the day (which they did in my area).

I live on the North Circular Road on the Phoenix Park side. They used to lift ever week, now it is ever fortnight. This is a fact. I would point you at their schedule on their website but they don't publish it.

Again I got quicker responses than this, though such things can depend on how busy the contact center is.

3 days probably isn't the worst but loosing/not replying to emails is really bad. And again like I said at the top of first post, this is my experience.

I'd say your problem is with the english language then. Here's a screenshot of my greyhound account.

There is nothing wrong with my grasp of the English language, thanks very much, I said "try deciphering how much you paid for what". In 'your account' section there is no account statement that shows your credit over time compared to the charges taken off for particular lifts etc. This would make a lot of sense and may explain why my payments to them compared to lift charges+subscription+remaining credit simply don't add up. (again which is why I am email them and how I found this thread) They introduced new payment schemes in January called "Options", please point out where these are mentioned anywhere on the site, let alone which one I have somehow been signed up to. Numerous links are also broken. There is no route schedules. There is no section to inform you of what goes in the green bin or the brown bin. What is the point of a website if not to convay this type of information, therefore I say it is a farce.

Email/ring them and ask for one delivered, they had no problem getting me a green bin

I did ring them and they simple said they would not be providing the brown bin service to my road. Which is really annoying and surprising as there are several adjoining roads that are serviced.

While slightly distasteful, there's nothing unusual with that.

Not unusual perhaps but then it would be distasteful, perhaps disingenuous to then claim to be an Irish owned company would it not?

antoobrien

redbeaard wrote: »

I live on the North Circular Road on the Phoenix Park side. They used to lift ever week, now it is ever fortnight. This is a fact. I would point you at their schedule on their website but they don't publish it.

Well yes they do, here's your schedule:http://web.greyhound.ie/wp-content/plugins/housesearch/timetables/tuesblackbrown.pdf

Start by looking at this page: http://web.greyhound.ie/dcc/dcc-download-timetable/

In D5 it has been every two weeks for the past several years, with no change when greyhound took over.

westgolf

Apparently Greyhound have a poor reputation in Dublin.

biko

Ok, I think we'll wrap it up here folks. You've heard some good and some bad, from Galway and other places.
Hopefully it'll be enough for you to make your minds up about who you think should take care of your bins.

Doom

I see an article in the independent about them not properly collecting segregated waste and just the other day a sales man was in our area looking to sign people up, he was asking for names and said an info leaflet will be send out, guess what? A truck pulls up two days later to deliver your new bins...... .....I seen the poor bin delivery guy driving around getting a few choice words of neighbors.

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/waste-firm-disciplines-staff-for-permit-breach-29165263.html

QikBax

Yeah really dodgy company.

I had to tell the door to door guy to F off. Real smug gimp.

inisboffin

*Obnoxious* Greyhound salesman at our door earlier. Really pushed it. Third one now in a few weeks. My neighbour mentioned that to him and he said "ah sure they missed a load and they are not really keeping track of what houses they went to".
Hmm. Detachment from company and lack of ownership inspires *loads* of confidence in the product :rolleyes:
I went from polite to slamming the door in his face. As did my neighbour.
I know there was a thread recently about them, and I realise they might have a hard sell training but they are only sending clients to City Bin. Hard sell doesn't work so well here. Rude sell even less. :mad:

markhar9877

Seriously who cares? If they collect your bins and are cheaper so what? Obnoxious saleman so what? It's their problem. Slam the door on him and book it via their website.

Not sure what the fuss is about. We've enough bloody bills to pay for basic services that used to come out of our taxes. Any competition is good.

biko

Sorry but let's not get into this again, got messy before.