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Epping Forest District Council, in Essex, says: “If your waste or recycling collection has not been made by 4pm on your scheduled day of collection it means that the severe weather and adverse road conditions have prevented us from reaching your property.

“We apologise for the inconvenience caused and would ask you to take your bins, bags and boxes back onto your property and place them out again for collection on your next scheduled day.”

In Exeter, where alleyways have been left knee-deep in black bags full of leftover Christmas food and rubbish, the council has said: “Generally, if a collection can not take place due to heavy snow, then bins/bags must be taken back onto your property and re-presented on the next scheduled collection for that type of waste. Unfortunately, we won't be able to come back for your uncollected bins in between.”

For those worried that uncollected piles of rubbish will attract rats and foxes, the website adds: “The cold weather will slow decomposition of waste and odours will be minimal.”

Birmingham has been one of the worst-hit areas, as a strike and work-to-rule by binmen added to the disruption caused by snow and Bank Holidays in December.

The city council’s website states: “If you have a scheduled black sack or clinical waste collection for this day and your collection was missed, please take your waste back and place it within the boundary of your property as near to the edge of your property as possible and we will collect it as soon as possible.”

St Helen’s on Merseyside, another area where residents have complained about long delays in rubbish collection, also says that if bins are still full at the end of the afternoon, “you should retrieve them and place them out for collection on their normal day”.

Cotswold District Council has allowed households to leave their bins out for the next collection, but has refused to waive “health and safety” rules regarding the amount of rubbish that can be left despite the increase in waste created over Christmas.

Its website states: “Residents have been asked not to overload wheeled bins, and to ensure the lid is closed, otherwise it cannot be emptied owing to health and safety risks.”

In Darlington, County Durham, the backlog of uncollected rubbish was made worse over the weekend by dustcarts breaking down on New Year’s Eve.

The council website admits that “a number of refuse and recycling collections” due on Friday were not made “following mechanical problems with some of Darlington Council's refuse and recycling wagons”.

Residents have used blogs, Facebook and Twitter to express their frustration at the poor service they have received, with many demanding council tax rebates.

Some have also suggested their own solutions to the problem of unemptied bins, such as taking rubbish and recycling to tips or bottle banks or even setting fire to it.

One Twitter user wrote: “Having to burn rubbish..... bins full cos of delayed collection during holiday.”

A commenter on the Telegraph website suggested: “Simple solution (for those of us who live in the country anyway): (1) Scrounge old oil drum from local garage (2) cut top off and a bunch of 3in diameter holes in the sides of the drum (3) throw rubbish in it (4) pour half a gallon of red diesel or central heating kerosene on it (5) burn it. Problem solved.”

Title:

assistant: Rubbish backlog: Families told to keep waste off street until binmen return