A man was left “frustrated” after piles of rubbish blocked the pavement outside his home and left him unable to park his car.

Maricel Socola, of Prestwick Road, South Oxhey, was “angry” his concerns were not dealt with quickly Thrive Homes, which owns the flats in his street.

The 49-year-old regularly felt “disgusted” by the smell of the rubbish during the past week and was unable to park properly each day, as black bin bags obstructed the path leading to his house.

After The Watford Observer contacted Thrive Homes on Wednesday afternoon, the heaps of refuse were cleaned up.

Mr Socola said: “I am shocked that nothing was done about it for so long after I contacted the council and Thrive Homes and it seemed as though they did not care.

“We were not able to park and it blocked the pavement outside my home. Even worse, it smelt terrible - especially in the warm weather.

“I have lived here since 2006 and rubbish is not usually an issue in the area.”

Three Rivers District Council says the issue was reported to Thrive Homes, as they own the block of flats.  

An unnamed spokesman said: “The council’s street cleansing team noted this waste last week and brought it to the attention of our environmental department who inspected the waste, wrote to the tenant concerned and asked him to remove the excess refuse. The tenant didn’t move it this so it was reported to Thrive Homes.

“When there is excess refuse outside flats we bring it to the attention of the owner. We are not treating this as fly tipping as it is excess refuse that was left out next to the tenants’ refuse bin. The council also spoke to the resident this morning to reiterate that he needs to remove the excess refuse off the street.

“Three Rivers District Council does investigate and deal with genuine fly tips and the waste is removed by the council if it is on council land or by the land owner if on private land as protecting the environment is one of the district council’s priorities.

“If evidence is found of genuine fly tipping, we start an investigation to potential prosecution.”

A spokesman for Thrive Homes, who was also not named, said: “We are sorting it out today and charging the tenant that left it there for the cost of cleaning it up.”