A bin lorry caught fire in Hayse Hill, Windsor, on 4 November, the third this year. The council says batteries in a black bag were the likely cause.

A bin lorry caught fire in Hayse Hill, Windsor, on Wednesday 4 November. Crews had to tip the whole load onto the road so the fire could be dealt with. It was the third waste vehicle fire in the Royal Borough this year.

The council says the fire was probably started by a large number of lithium batteries. They had been put inside a black bag in a household bin. Nobody was hurt, according to the council’s statement on 10 November.

Councillor Mark Wilson, the Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, thanked the Serco collection crew and Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service. “It only takes one battery in the wrong place to start a fire, putting collection crews, residents, vehicles and property at risk,” he said.

The council also cites research by Material Focus, a recycling charity. It found more than 1,200 battery fires in UK bin lorries and waste sites in 2023/24, up 71 per cent on the year before.

What it means for you

Batteries, vapes and anything electrical with a battery inside must never go in your black bin or your blue recycling bin. Instead:

  • Loose batteries: put them in a small plastic bag and leave it on top of, or next to, your recycling bin on collection day.
  • Small electricals: one small carrier bag can go on top of, or beside, the recycling bin. Cables and plugs can stay attached. Take the batteries out first and bag them separately.
  • Never inside the bin: the council says a bagged item put inside the recycling bin means the bin will not be emptied. Electricals ride in a separate cage under the lorry.

The council’s small electricals page lists what the crews take, from kettles, toasters and hair dryers to phones, laptops and games consoles. Wipe your personal data from phones, tablets and laptops first.

Some things are too big or too risky for the kerbside collection. Car batteries, TVs and monitors, microwaves, vacuum cleaners, light bulbs and fluorescent tubes go to the Stafferton Way tip in Maidenhead, or through the council’s paid large item collection. Our bin collection days page has the tip’s opening hours and the large item prices.