Council bulky waste collections compared across ten councils

How do Bromley and Bexley compare?

Bromley Council charges a minimum of £43, priced by the number and type of items, and shows per-item prices only when you book. It collects within 10 working days of payment, from the front of the property only, never the public highway. Cancelling with less than a day's notice costs £43, and households on Universal Credit or Housing Benefit get one free collection a year up to £43 (Bromley Council (external site)).

Bexley Council starts at £50, or £67.50 on a Saturday, and the price rises with the number and size of items. Pensioners get more items for the same price. Items go outside but off the highway, and crews won't collect from inside the home or from a rear garden without side access. Bexley won't take pianos, large amounts of rubble, garden waste, hazardous or clinical waste, or what it calls "large amounts of black sacks from clearances" (Bexley Council (external site)). The full price bands only show once you start a booking.

What do Greenwich, Lewisham and Southwark charge?

The Royal Borough of Greenwich charges £13.82 per item, with a set such as a sofa set or a table and chairs counting as one. Bagged waste is £4.19 a bag, with a minimum of four bags (£16.76) and a maximum of five. Council tenants pay through their service charge. Items must be at the front by 6am, and crews won't collect from rear gardens, locked stores, gated car parks without codes, or properties with steps or steep slopes. Cancelling needs 48 hours' notice (Royal Greenwich (external site)).

Lewisham Council charges £5 per item, covering things like mattresses, sofas, beds and carpets. A fridge or freezer is £25, and American-style or double-door models aren't collected. Crews don't come inside, so flats leave items at the front of the building. Carpets must be rolled and liftable by two people, and the fee isn't refunded if you cancel (Lewisham Council (external site)). The council cut the charge (external site) from £42 for up to four items.

Southwark Council charges £35 for up to 10 items in one collection, with no discounts or concessions (Southwark Council (external site)). The lead time isn't published, so check what's accepted and when they can come on the booking page.

What do Croydon, Merton and Epsom and Ewell charge?

Croydon Council charges £40.40 for one to three items and £65.30 for four to six, with a maximum of six. Collections run Monday to Friday, 5am to 10pm, and items must be out the night before. Sofas and armchairs containing persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are collected on a separate visit. Our guide to sofa disposal and the POPs rules explains why. Croydon won't take mirrors, glass, pianos, tiles, tree stumps, large fence panels, cast iron baths, construction waste or waterlogged items, and you can cancel up to one working day before (Croydon Council (external site)).

Merton Council has given every household one free collection of up to three items a year since 1 June 2026 (Merton news (external site)). After that it's £39.75 for up to three items and £66 for four to six, on weekdays only, bookable up to 60 days ahead, and your council tax must be up to date. Upholstered items may be collected up to two working days apart. Merton doesn't collect garden waste, soil, rubble, plasterboard, bathroom fixtures, tiles, doors, windows, kitchen units, shed panels, flooring, timber, paint, tyres, gas canisters, large glass or asbestos (Merton Council (external site)).

Epsom and Ewell Borough Council's 2026 to 2027 fees are £55.50 for up to three items, £111.05 for four to six, £166.60 for seven to nine and £222.10 for ten to twelve. Five refuse sacks count as one item (Epsom and Ewell fees (external site)). Items go at the front boundary by 6.30am. The council won't take rubble, posts, paving, iron baths, soil, pianos, American-style fridges, asbestos, or glass doors and panes, and the fee is non-refundable (Epsom and Ewell (external site)).

What do Dartford and Sevenoaks charge?

Dartford Borough Council charges £39.50 for up to 10 items, and you can add up to four more at £2 each. It isn't collecting fridges or freezers at the moment, which it puts down to "a national lack of availability at treatment plants". Sofas, armchairs and other upholstered seating may be collected separately on a different date because of the POPs rules (Dartford Borough Council (external site)). Its page doesn't show a lead time or where items should be left, so check with the council.

Sevenoaks District Council charges £26 for one item, £31 for two, £42.50 for three or four and £57 for five to ten. Corner sofas are £31 each and white goods £26 each. The limit is ten items, collected on your usual bin day, outside your boundary by 7am, and the service is for households only. It won't collect TVs, furniture or doors with glass, gas canisters or plasterboard, and fridges and freezers are "currently unavailable due to national issue" (Sevenoaks District Council (external site)).

What do the councils have in common?

Set side by side, the ten councils differ most on price and item limits, and a few patterns stand out:

• Every council that says where items go wants them outside, at the front of the property or the boundary, often by 6am or 7am.
• Many refuse rubble, soil, plasterboard or garden waste.
• Many cap the number of items, so a whole room or a house clearance won't fit.
• Lewisham and Epsom and Ewell don't refund a cancelled booking, and Bromley charges £43 for a late cancellation.
• Fridges and freezers are off the list in Dartford and Sevenoaks for now.

For two or three items you can carry to the kerb, a council collection will usually cost less.

Where does a collection priced by load fit?

A paid collection makes sense where the council stops: items upstairs or in the back garden, more than the item limit, or a mix of furniture, bags, garden waste and rubble.

RLE Waste Clearance prices by load rather than by item. You pay for the space your waste takes up in the truck, from £60 plus VAT for a minimum load, roughly a few bags or one armchair, to £360 plus VAT for a full truck. As a guide, a half truck at £180 plus VAT is roughly a one-bedroom flat's furniture. Our two-person crew loads it from wherever it is in the house or garden, and loading time, transport and disposal are included. Some items cost extra, such as a mattress at £10 plus VAT or a domestic fridge at £60 plus VAT, and the rest are under extra items.

Send a photo and your postcode to 07534 244774 and we'll confirm the price before we start. Waste removal in South London covers the boroughs we work in, and fridge disposal and mattress disposal cover the two items councils most often limit.