CIVIC chiefs are promising to crackdown on residents who let their overflowing bins spill out onto the city’s streets.

Bosses at Southampton City Council say they could even fine residents up to £60 if they don’t comply with its rules on rubbish.

However civic chiefs say they are yet to hand out a ‘fixed penalty notice’ to repeat offenders.

It comes as more residents reported their pest problems to the Echo this week, and blamed the council’s change to alternate weekly bin collections.

Pensioner Eileen Giles, of Pegasus Close, Lordshill said her road had become infested with rats since August - two months after Southampton City Council slashed its bin collections.

Another resident on the road said she had spotted one of the rodents and claimed it was “as big as a cat”.

Mrs Giles, a great-grandmother-of-nine, said: “I’ve lived here 33 years and I’ve never had a problem with rats before.

“It makes me feel horrible.

“They are rodents and they carry disease.”

Mrs Giles, a council tennant, said she and her neighbour contacted the authority asking for help with the pest problem.

However, the retired restaurant supervisor said the council quoted her a bill of £60 for three visits, and further £20 thereafter.

“I haven’t just got that kind of money lying around,” said Mrs Giles, 83.

“I live on my own and that’s a weekly food bill for me.

“I pay rent and I pay council tax - they should provide that service.”

Mrs Giles’ comments come after bin chiefs revealed that a fifth of the city is still struggling to cope with alternate weekly bin collections.

Speaking at full council on Wednesday, cabinet member for transport and environment, councillor Jacqui Rayment, heaped praise on the “80 per cent of the city” who were “coping brilliantly” since the authority slashed its weekly general waste collection in place of a fortnightly system.

However, she admitted that “20 per cent” of the city were still struggling - leading to overflowing bins, fly-tipping and an increase in pests.

“There are still hotspots. But these are areas were we have always had issues in the past,” councillor Rayment said.

“The fact that we’ve had problems there before means it is no surprise that we have problems now.”

The Labour councillor named areas such as Bevois, Portswood and Nicholstown as some of the worst offending areas.

“It’s mostly inner city areas, because of the density, because of the number of house of multiple occupancies (HMOs) and because of the number of students,” she added.

Asked what the council planned to do, councillor Rayment said the authority would continue to work with the areas that were “struggling”.

She said the authority was using new ‘reactive teams’, who would follow regular bin lorries picking up excessively heavy bins and side waste.

The teams will then offer advice or, if eligible, a bigger bin.

Councillor Rayment said that those who continued to ignore advice could face further action, including the possibility of fines.

She added that “education” would play a key part of the council’s drive to fix the city’s rubbish problem.

Although councillor Rayment admitted there were problems with the scheme, she believed it had been a success so far.

She pointed to the city’s recycling rates, which the authority say has improved by three percent since the council introduced alternate weekly bin collections.

At full council on Wednesday, Labour reaffirmed its position on weekly bin collections, rejecting a Conservative motion asking for a review of the scheme.

Led by councillors Paul O’Neill and Jeremy Moulton, the opposition group said parts of the city were “struggling to cope” with the changes.

The pair urged Labour for a re-think and the reinstatement of weekly bin collections in the worst affected areas.

However, councillor Rayment responded by accusing the Conservatives of “not believing” in the people of Southampton and their ability to cope with the change.

The motion was subsequently voted down by Labour.