A trader says he is losing patience after being forced to repeatedly hire a skip to clear up piles of fly-tipped rubbish outside his shop. 

Inder Chug, 75, has appealed to Harrow Council to step in and tackle the ongoing issue, which he says is attracting rats. 

He said people will continue to dump things there as long as they feel they can get away with it, while law-abiding residents suffer.  

Inder said: “I am at my wits end. Nobody is taking responsibility for this problem – surely the council can do something?

“I’ve had to hire three skips to clear it away since the start of the pandemic but it keeps coming back. It’s costing me an absolute fortune.

“It’s really bad. I’ve seen live and dead rats and it’s becoming a real health hazard.

“Enough is enough, we’re all absolutely disgusted by it. What are we paying our rates for if things like this keep happening?” 

The row of shops and homes in Belmont Circle can be accessed by a service road, which Inder believes is attractive to fly-tippers as they are less likely to be seen. 

He explained he has provided bins for his business and the adjacent flats to manage his and his tenants’ rubbish but that this is having little impact on the wider problem. 

He added there have been attempts to install cameras to help catch the culprits but said it is a struggle to get full coverage when a neighbouring former bar remains derelict. 

Inder said: “We’ve put up cameras and signs to deter people but we can’t put any up on one of the key walls as it belongs to a former club that hasn’t been open for two years.”

Rebecca Melody, who runs the Angie V pub on the same street, said the dumping is affecting her business. 

She said: “It’s very frustrating. I struggle to park my car sometimes, my deliveries can’t get in, and customers won’t park here so they’ll end up going somewhere else. 

“Even the rubbish collectors won’t come in to get the bins – it’s embarrassing. People have said it looks like a shanty town.”

Inder explained he has written to the council for advice on how to address the issue and was assured that it is “looking into it”. 

However, he is yet to have any further response or see any attempts to alleviate the problem. 

Harrow Council has been contacted for comment.