A COUNCIL is having to replace hundreds of bins every year because they have been reported stolen.

More than 800 bins have been reported stolen by residents in the Barrow borough in the last five four years.

The leader of Barrow council has raised concerns over the cost to the taxpayer of having to source and replace new bins.

In total, 837 bins have had to be replaced by the council after they were reported stolen since 2018, from when figures are available.

Figures showed a huge rise in bins being reported between 2018/19 and 2019/20 where the number jumped from 16 to 184.

Some 374 stolen bins were replaced by the council in the last financial year - a four-year high - and 263 have already been reported stolen in 2021/22.

A total of 23 bins have been replaced since 2018 because they were lost.

Other parts of the country have reported that a demand for larger wheelie bins has lead to a 'black market' for stolen containers.

One Barrow resident said her bin had been stolen at least twice.

Barrow Council said each new bin cost £12.

It takes an average of seven days to replace a bin when it has been reported stolen, the authority said.

The figures were provided to The Mail following a request under freedom of information laws.

Residents can ask the council to replace a lost or stolen bin free of charge.

Anyone who wants a larger bin can must make an application to the council.

The leader of Barrow Council, Ann Thomson, expressed her disappointment over bins being stolen and offered advice and how to prevent the thefts.

She said: "It's extremely disappointing to see that bins are being taken from residents' properties especially as this has a huge knock on cost to every taxpayer in the borough.

"Residents are reminded bins can be placed out for collection no earlier than 12pm on the eve of collection and no later than 7am and must be returned to their property by midnight of the collection day."