Important info for DLR Greenstar customers moving to Greyhound

coylemj

I'm in the DLR area and my bins are collected by Greenstar, I just got a letter indicating that unless I chose otherwise, my account will be transferred to Greyhound with effect from Dec 31st 2016.

The pack I received has a 'goodbye' letter from Greenstar and a 'welcome' letter from Greyhound plus there are information sheets concerning what you can and cannot put in the different bins.

One thing that is mentioned on the info sheets but not referred to in either of the A4 letters is that Greyhound do not collect glass i.e. you can't put glass into the green (or any other) bin so if you elect to transfer over to Greyhound by doing nothing, you will have to make sure that your green bin is emptied by Greenstar by Dec 31st after which you cannot put glass into it or Greyhound will refuse to lift it from January 1st.

coylemj

Update: this just in from Greenstar ....

We have only recently got information from greyhound that they will infact continue to collect the glass in the recycling bin for our current greenstar customers.

I asked if there will be a time limit on this, this was the response from Greenstar ......

Im not sure what will happen after the 6 months as far as i am aware they are honouring this going forward.

TBH I'm a bit sceptical about this, the Greyhound website says no glass in any bin, why should they start a new sorting line in their recycling centre for DLR customers when they don't take glass anywhere else?

https://greyhound.ie/what-goes-in-my-bin/

schemingbohemia

Very annoying, I hadn't actually noticed that difference. Perhaps Greenstar are allowing Greyhound to use their facility? And that's how the glass can be collected.

Lia Macanru

I also got this notification today. Current prices as charged by Greenstar will remain the same until 1 July. After that you'll be fair game! Panda seems to be the only alternative available, but there's no sign of them bateing down my door for my business. It seems to be the case that our public service waste collection service might have been replaced by a cartel. Where can we get a comparison of prices, terms and conditions offered by the service providers?

ted1

Lia Macanru wrote: »

I also got this notification today. Current prices as charged by Greenstar will remain the same until 1 July. After that you'll be fair game! Panda seems to be the only alternative available, but there's no sign of them bateing down my door for my business. It seems to be the case that our public service waste collection service might have been replaced by a cartel. Where can we get a comparison of prices, terms and conditions offered by the service providers?

Panda brought Greenstar but the regulator forced the sale of the DLRCoCo business as they would have had a monopoly in this area. So the whole process is to remove a cartell. The data should be in their websites, have you checked ?

Lia Macanru

Thanks ted1. So...where can i find a comparison of prices, services, terms, etc., that will satisfy me that there's no cartel?

Lia Macanru

cartel (noun): an association of manufacturers or suppliers with the purpose of maintaining prices at a high level and restricting competition.

Monopoly (noun): the exclusive possession or control of the supply of or trade in a commodity or service.

coylemj

Lia Macanru wrote: »

Thanks ted1. So...where can i find a comparison of prices, services, terms, etc.....

Panda have no pricing on their website for prospective domestic customers so you can't compare them to your current supplier.

And Panda don't take glass either so I can't see Greyhound taking glass in the green bins for very long in 2017 from ex-Greenstar customers .........

https://www.panda.ie/household/what-can-i-put-in-my-bin.html

Awaaf

coylemj wrote: »

Panda have no pricing on their website for prospective domestic customers so you can't compare them to your current supplier.

And Panda don't take glass either so I can't see Greyhound taking glass in the green bins for very long in 2017 from ex-Greenstar customers .........

https://www.panda.ie/household/what-can-i-put-in-my-bin.html

Panda take glass in DLR regardless of what it says on their website.

Lia Macanru

What odds for a price increase from 1 July next?

mickoneill31

Got the letter too yesterday. It seems a bit late notice around the holiday season. Thanks Greenstar.

Anyway, are our only options Panda and Greyhound? Does anybody know pricing. Neither put their prices on their websites.
Greyhound seem to do pay by weight or by lift. It'd be handy to see a comparison of those prices.

100gSoma

Very interested in this thread...
So it seems unofficially that Panda take glass in the green bin from DLR customers only? There is nothing official anywhere about this arrangement? Not on their website etc. And apparently Greyhound will also continue to take glass in the green bin for ex-Greenstar customers? even though the 'welcome letter' expressly states NO GLASS. This is all a bit confusing to be honest. It's made worse that Panda don't provide pricing for prospective customers, so there is no way to compare the services. I have 21 days to get out of my contract with Greenstar(soon to be greyhound). The only viable option is Panda. I'd like to find out more about pricing of Greyhound v Greenstar and also about the glass situation.
I'll email both today and update here if I get a reply.

100gSoma

I've received a reply from Panda... I asked if they take glass, and about their rates. The reply states they will not be taking any new customers in DLR as their trucks are full to capacity. Hmm... My whole cul de sac is with Panda so might have made things easier. 
So let me see if I have this right: Panda bought Greenstar but the regulator forced them to sell the DLR customer base to Greyhound as Panda would have a monopoly in DLR otherwise. Now, Panda cannot take any new customers in DLR so essentially I am stuck with Greyhound? And the regulator forced this situation to give people in DLR a choice? That's ironic no?
Panda Reply below
[font=Calibri, sans-serif]Good afternoon,[/font]
[font=Calibri, sans-serif] [/font][font=Calibri, sans-serif]Panda do except glass in the recycle bins in the DLR area.[/font]
[font=Calibri, sans-serif]However, our trucks are currently full to capacity in that area so we cannot take on any new customers at the moment.[/font]
[font=Calibri, sans-serif]If you have any further queries please do not hesitate to contact me directly.[/font]
[font=Calibri, sans-serif]Kind regards, [/font]
[font=Calibri, sans-serif]Panda Customer Care[/font]

[font=Calibri, sans-serif]Domestic Department[/font]

mickoneill31

Amazingly coincidentally Panda arent taking any new customers in my area either (Fingal).
Greenstar are moving out of my area too.

So my choices are
Greyhound.
Nothing else.

aoh

Panda Prices (at least in DLR)

Standard Charge (Annual) €64.00

Black Bin
€3.20 per lift
€0.2770 per kilo

Brown Bin
Service €5.50 per month
€2.56 per lift
€0.16 per kilo

All plus VAT at 13.5%

One comment about the lifts. They only seem to charge per lift if it weighs more than 5Kgs. My last bill says they collected 27 kgs but only charged for one lift over the three months.

Lia Macanru

Thanks all, and particular thanks to aoh on prices.

100gSoma

Confirmation from Greyhound that they will indeed be taking glass in the green bin (in DLR).
Hi thank you for your email,
Yes we originally said no glass but this has now been changed and we will be taking glass in the green bin. Any other queries please do not hesitate to get in contact.
[font=Arial, sans-serif]Kind Regards,
Greyhound[/font]

AndrewJRenko

We got a letter this morning from Greyhound with a payment card attached. It seemed to imply that we would be using a card system that needs top-ups, rather than the current direct debit system. Are we really gong to have to change payment methods?

Panda's refusal to take on new business would seem to defeat the purpose of the forced sale of this business. I had a quick look at the documents, but I can't really make much sense of it. Can anyone else work it out?
http://ccpc.ie/enforcement/mergers/merger-notices/m16008-pandagreen-greenstar

100gSoma

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Panda's refusal to take on new business would seem to defeat the purpose of the forced sale of this business. 

Yes. It completely defeats the purpose of the forced sale. I have been onto the CCPC about this exact issue and they replied with a very generic reply saying "provide proof of the anti-competitive behaviour and we will investigate" 
I sent them the Panda correspondence I received that stated "trucks are full, not taking new business". 
I'll see if the CCPC  have an opinion on it.

AndrewJRenko

100gSoma wrote: »

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Panda's refusal to take on new business would seem to defeat the purpose of the forced sale of this business. 

Yes. It completely defeats the purpose of the forced sale. I have been onto the CCPC about this exact issue and they replied with a very generic reply saying "provide proof of the anti-competitive behaviour and we will investigate" 
I sent them the Panda correspondence I received that stated "trucks are full, not taking new business". 
I'll see if the CCPC  have an opinion on it.

Fair play to you for taking it on - hope they do something.

Lia Macanru

I tried to register online with Greyhound, but they didn't recognise me and I consequently couldn't complete registering. I rang them to find out what I should do and they said I should leave my bin (green) out on the usual day and it would be collected. I did that, but they never collected it (today). Anyone else have this or different experience? I will ring them tomorrow. Meanwhile I have sent them a message through their contact facility on their website. I got the answer below, and will update with any reply.

"Your message has been sent! Thank you for contacting Greyhound Household. Our customer care team will contact you within one working day(During busy periods this may be longer). If your query is urgent, please call us. Numbers are listed below."

AndrewJRenko

Lia Macanru wrote: »

I tried to register online with Greyhound, but they didn't recognise me and I consequently couldn't complete registering. I rang them to find out what I should do and they said I should leave my bin (green) out on the usual day and it would be collected. I did that, but they never collected it (today). Anyone else have this or different experience? I will ring them tomorrow. Meanwhile I have sent them a message through their contact facility on their website. I got the answer below, and will update with any reply.

"Your message has been sent! Thank you for contacting Greyhound Household. Our customer care team will contact you within one working day(During busy periods this may be longer). If your query is urgent, please call us. Numbers are listed below."

Are all Greenstar customers supposed to register with Greyhound?

Lia Macanru

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Are all Greenstar customers supposed to register with Greyhound?

Greyhound didn't say that to me, so I assumed not; I decided to register anyway, just in case. However, I didn't succeed. Just checked outside and found the bin has been emptied. I'm pleasantly surprised as I hadn't expected that there'd be a collection so late in the day, but credit where due. All good so far. :-)

coylemj

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Are all Greenstar customers supposed to register with Greyhound?

No, the default (if you do nothing) is that they hand over your details and you become a Greyhound customer. The letter Greenstar sent includes a Greyhound welcome letter and membership card with a unique a/c number, did you get that?

Greenstar letter:

If you are happy for Greyhound Household to become your new provider, you DO NOT NEED TO DO ANYTHING. We will simply pass your details to Greyhound Household and they will maintain your current terms and conditions.

Caps above as are per the letter.

AndrewJRenko

coylemj wrote: »

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Are all Greenstar customers supposed to register with Greyhound?

No, the default (if you do nothing) is that they hand over your details and you become a Greyhound customer. The letter Greenstar sent includes a Greyhound welcome letter and membership card with a unique a/c number,  did you get that?

Greenstar letter:

If you are happy for Greyhound Household to become your new provider, you DO NOT NEED TO DO ANYTHING. We will simply pass your details to Greyhound Household and they will maintain your current terms and conditions.

Caps above as are per the letter.

Yes, got the welcome card, which confused me a bit in itself, as there was references to 'topping up the card'.

100gSoma

Well

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

100gSoma wrote: »

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Panda's refusal to take on new business would seem to defeat the purpose of the forced sale of this business. 

Yes. It completely defeats the purpose of the forced sale. I have been onto the CCPC about this exact issue and they replied with a very generic reply saying "provide proof of the anti-competitive behaviour and we will investigate" 
I sent them the Panda correspondence I received that stated "trucks are full, not taking new business". 
I'll see if the CCPC  have an opinion on it.

Fair play to you for taking it on - hope they do something.

Well the second reply from CCPC was long and detailed like a legal reply.
Let me summarize... 
The CCPC are not responsible for commercial aspects that occur after the deal. In other words, their job was to ensure the customers in DLR would not be worse off now than if they had not ruled on Panda to sell it's Greenstar business in DLR to Greyhound. So...I guess we are not worse of. If CCPC gave no order, we would be Panda customers now and have no choice of another vendor. Instead we are Greyhound and have no choice of another vendor (due to commercial reasons outside of CCPCs remit. i.e. Panda trucks full, not taking on new business etc)