Bulky waste collection: council or private

Your council's website explains which large items it collects, how to book, what it charges and when the next collection slot is. Charges, the number of items per booking and waiting times differ from council to council. Some offer reduced rates for people receiving certain benefits. Most ask you to put the items outside your property, at the kerbside or front garden, on the morning of the collection.

Councils often refuse some items: building rubble, bathroom suites, garden sheds, car parts, items that are wet or broken up, and sometimes more than a certain number of bags. Check the list before booking. If you live in a flat, ask where to leave items; leaving them in a communal area without a booking is fly-tipping.

If you have a car or van, the household waste recycling centre takes most bulky household items from residents. Many now need a booking, and vans or trailers may need a permit. DIY waste such as rubble and plasterboard may be limited or charged.

When you buy a new electrical appliance, the retailer may take the old one back when it has the same function, for example an old fridge when a new one is delivered. Furniture in good condition can go to a charity or furniture reuse project, many of which collect for free. A charity collecting items must be on the waste carrier register as a lower tier carrier.

A private collection firm comes when you need it, often within days, and carries items out of the house. That matters if you cannot get a heavy sofa to the kerb yourself, if items are upstairs, or if you need the space cleared before a delivery, a sale or the end of a tenancy. It also helps with mixed loads the council will not take in one booking, such as furniture together with bags of garden waste and an old shed.

It usually costs more than the council for a few items, and it brings the duty to check who is taking the waste. For a whole property or a large amount, a house clearance may be the better service to ask for.

• a list of items with approximate sizes, and photographs
• where they are: floor, stairs, lift, garden, garage
• whether any are electrical, upholstered or hazardous
• the collection date and whether you need to be present
• the price per item or per load, and what it includes
• the company's upper tier waste carrier registration

Anyone who gives household waste to someone else has to make sure that person can legally take it. Before a private collection, look up the company on the public register of waste carriers and check that it is registered as an upper tier carrier. England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland each have their own register. A scrap metal collector should also be on the register of scrap metal dealers.

If your old furniture is later found dumped and you did not check, the council can issue you a fixed penalty notice, and unpaid or repeated cases can lead to prosecution. Adverts on social media for cheap rubbish removal, with only a mobile number and no business name, are the typical source of fly-tipped furniture. A price well below the council's charge for the same items is a warning sign, because legal disposal costs money.

Sofas, armchairs and other upholstered seating that are thrown away may contain persistent organic pollutants from old flame retardants. In England, waste upholstered seating has to be kept separate and destroyed, usually by incineration, rather than landfilled or mixed with other waste. Councils and registered firms know this; ask how your sofa will be handled. Mattresses are not covered by this particular rule.

Fridges and freezers contain refrigerants and insulation foam that have to be removed at a specialist treatment facility. They count as waste electrical equipment and should never be left outside for someone to strip for metal.

If the council route does not work for you, describe the items and where they are, and we pass your request, without your name, to collection and clearance businesses in your area. One business buys the request and pays us for it; the service is free for you. We email you its name, address and phone number before it receives your details, so you can check the waste carrier register. There is no guarantee that a firm takes on a small job.