Thibaud Hue 10:19 am, March 30, 2023

In Paris, Le Havre and Nantes, garbage cans continue to accumulate in the streets and insalubrity sets in. Many residents are angry and elected officials are calling on town halls to reimburse residents for the tax on household waste. A measure that turns out to be possible in certain cases only.

Filled garbage cans, garbage piling up, others flying into the streets... The garbage collectors' strike in connection with the social movement against the pension reform made headlines. If in Paris, the social movement has just ended, in Nantes, it is still relevant. Today, many elected officials are calling for the refund of the tax on household waste levied with the property tax. But is it possible?

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Yes, in some cases. Thus, if your city chose a fee system for the removal of household waste and the bins stagnated at the bottom of your home, you are entitled to claim a reduction. This is the case, for example, for the municipalities of Haut-Limousin en Marche, Belle-Île-en-Mer in Brittany or Yvetot, in Normandy. "If the service is not rendered, the user is much more entitled to claim a partial or total refund depending on whether the service was correctly or not rendered over a period," explains public law lawyer Sébastien Thoinet to Europe 1.

A call for responsibility from the city of Nantes

On the other hand, in other cities such as Paris, it is a tax and not a fee. In this case, regardless of whether the garbage is collected or not, the amount does not change. Only the town hall can choose to make a gesture.

This is also what Senator Laurence Garnier is asking for the city of Nantes. "The city is crumbling under piles of garbage that sometimes reach two meters high," she told Europe 1. "It only seems social justice to be able to give back to the people of Nantes this money for a public service from which they no longer benefit. Or that the mayor of Nantes assumes her responsibilities: to ensure the cleaning and health of public space." Especially since in 2022, the tax for Nantes residents has increased by 6%.