Replacing lost, stolen and damaged wheeliebins cost Thanet Council nearly £40,000 in the last financial year - a figure likely to rise as more of the two wheeled trash cans are introduced to the isle’s households.

At the moment, the authority replaces lost, stolen or damaged bins for free but it may start charging for them in future. The council’s cabinet group will consider agreeing to a charging scheme at its meeting next week (Thursday August 7). If it agrees to the idea, residents would have to pay up to £40 for a replacement wheeliebin.

A council report says 64,000 wheelies have been distributed to 32,000 homes in Thanet since September 2006 - two to each household - and this will climb to 80,000 by June 2009 as more properties are supplied with them.

New users will continue to receive their first bins free but face paying a charge if they are lost, stolen or simply wear out. Bins damaged by council refuse collectors will be replaced free.

In the year to April, 1,345 replacement bins were supplied by the council to householders. The bins themselves cost more than £21,000 but hiring additional delivery crews and vehicles pushed that figure to £37,500. They had to be taken on after an eight week backlog built up of people needing replacements.

Without introducing a charge, the cost of supplying free replacements will rise to around £42,000 during the current financial year and could hit £50,000 in 2009-10, says the report written by the council’s head of commercial services, Mark Seed.

It suggests the problem might worsen with private refuse collectors offering to empty bins on non-collection weeks and the potential damage they may cause.

The report points out the situation is a national one with many other local authorities charging for replacement bins up and down the country.