Households will be sent warning letters before being handed £80 fines over new bin rules set to come into force on Wednesday.

Previously, each local council had its own rules about what it collected and what could and couldn’t be recycled, but changes in the new Simpler Recycling scheme will aim to streamline and match up how bin collections work across England and Wales.

Following the rule changes, waste and recycling experts at Kingfisher Direct are warning households not to get caught out by what can and can’t go in each bin.

Food soiled packaging, such as greasy pizza boxes, are one of the biggest causes of contaminated recycling the firm says, and could attract £80 fines following warning letters for repeat offenders.

It says that despite the fact cardboard is normally recyclable, pizza boxes that are saturated with grease or food residue can’t be processed in standard paper recycling systems.

When placed in recycling bins, they can contaminate other materials and cause entire loads to be rejected. In fact, analysis by the Local Government Association also found that around 525,000 tonnes of household recycling collected by councils is rejected at sorting facilities each year, often due to incorrect items being placed in recycling bins.

While the maximum penalty for incorrectly presented waste is £80, councils cannot issue instant fines for one-off trivial mistakes. But persistent contamination issues that negatively affect local amenities can trigger a formal enforcement process.

Government guidance states this begins with a written warning outlining the breach, and a 28-day ‘notice of intent’ period before a final penalty is issued.

Ryan Kaila, Category Manager for Waste and Recycling at Kingfisher Direct, said: “People often assume anything made from cardboard or plastic can go straight into the recycling bin, but food residue can contaminate entire loads. When this happens, recycling may be rejected or diverted into general waste instead.

“With new rules coming into force, households should take extra care. Small changes in how packaging and food waste are disposed of can make a big difference to ensuring recycling actually gets processed.”

To avoid contamination, Ryan advises households to tear off clean sections of cardboard pizza boxes for recycling and place heavily soiled parts into general waste, while any leftover takeaway food should first be removed from packaging and placed into the new separate food waste bins being introduced under the simpler recycling reforms.