Neighbourhood dispute: Is it ever okay to use your neighbour’s rubbish bin?

You’ve had a big weekend, the rubbish is piling up and the bin is already overflowing, surely it wouldn’t matter if you dumped some of the extra cartons and food scraps in your neighbour’s bin. Right?

We’ve probably all done it at some stage, especially if it’s the night before rubbish collection day, but is it considered a rude or un-neighbourly thing to do?

Everyone has different opinions on the matter, many believe it is totally fine to offload a pile of junk when the neighbour’s bin is perhaps only a third full, while others would be fuming if they found someone down the street had taken claim to their bin.

A New Zealand radio talk show posed the question to listeners recently to get the inside knowledge on the situation with most saying it depends on when the rubbish is being dumped.

“I think if my neighbours knew I was putting my rubbish in their bins they wouldn’t like it. I’d let them put their stuff in mine but I’d just talk to them first,” one person told Newstalk ZB hosts.

While another said if it’s out on the curb ready for collection then it’s free space and open for all.

“If it’s the night before collection, their bins out and it’s half full, I don’t see the problem with that at all,” they said. “If it’s outside their house, like during the week, and you’re filling their bin up with your rubbish, that’s not on.”

It’s a tricky one that’s for sure and something you don’t want to get wrong in case it angers those next door, but in some places, including Auckland, NZ, you could actually be prosecuted for using your neighbour’s bin in accordance with council bylaws. 

Read more: Anger as woman catches neighbour stealing from her letter box

Neighbourhood disputes are quite common, whether it be someone parking in the wrong space on the road or an untidy front yard, there is always something going on.

But earlier this year one person took things too far when they were caught stealing parcels from their neighbour’s letter box.

Taking to Facebook back in July, Melbourne comedian Lucy Gransbury detailed her horror when she discovered a neighbour was actually responsible for stealing her package.

After obtaining CCTV footage, Gransbury was able to see a woman enter the apartment block with a key, pick up the parcel, read the name, shrug and keep it for herself.

Do you think it’s okay to use a neighbour’s rubbish bin?