Harrow Council’s brown bin collection charges are among the highest in the country, new research has shown.

Those living in the borough must fork out £75-a-year to have their garden waste collected on a fortnightly basis.

Only four local authorities in the UK charge more for an annual subscription, and Harrow’s prices are the joint-highest in London alongside Camden and Ealing.

Data collected by lawnmower company Flymo showed that, while more and more councils are introducing a fee for garden waste collection, those living in Bristol, for example, only have to pay £29-a-year.

Despite the comparatively high costs, Harrow Council defended its service and said there are alternatives for those looking to save money.

A spokesperson for the council said: “We are proud of our garden waste service, which is not just one of the country’s most popular services but one of the only services in the country to offer gardeners the flexibility they need.

“With summer services and other part-year services available, at a lower price, you can sign up for the collection that suits you.

“For gardeners that don’t wish to use our garden waste service, we can offer advice and support on composting.”

It comes after the new administration was challenged on its overall approach to bin collection.

Cllr Marilyn Ashton, deputy leader of Harrow Conservatives, questioned the council’s claim that the services were “running well”.

“There’s a real problem here. People ring up and say that they can’t get their bins emptied and this is widespread,” she said.

“We spend an awful lot of our time [on this matter] because these problems are escalating. There is something wrong, and it needs fixing.”

She added that along one road, a councillor had received ten recent, separate complaints over missed bin collections.

Cllr Varsha Parmar, responsible for the environment at Harrow Council, said she would be happy to discuss the issue with her colleagues in-depth, but assured them that the service was in a good place.

She said: “We lift more than 650,000 bins per month, which equates to 99.68 per cent [of the total].

“We do recognise that we should always strive for a continuously improved service and are always looking for opportunities to improve our services and give a positive customer experience.”