THINGS certainly did not run smoothly for pensioner Anne Hobson when one of the wheels fell off her grey bin as she was putting it out for collection.

The 71-year-old just about managed to haul the heavy bin 50ft to the end of her driveway, only for waste collectors to refused to empty it — because of the missing wheel.

Now, mother-of-three Mrs Hobson, of Larkhill, Farnworth, has branded the binmen “lazy” and will have to wait until Friday before she receives a replacement.

In the meantime she says she has no idea where she will store the excess waste she will accumulate.

She said: “I was putting out the grey bin but, one of the wheels dropped off. With the other wheel still attached, I managed to drag the bin to the end of my long driveway.

“But later on, I discovered it hadn’t been emptied.”

She said: “I can drag the bin 50ft to the end of my driveway, but able-bodied men can’t take it from the kerbside and have it emptied into the wagon just a few feet away.

“They’re just lazy and it seems they want the job done for them.”

She is also unhappy that a new grey bin won’t be delivered until Friday to coincide with the next collection day. I’ve nowhere now to put rubbish and excess waste. And I’m annoyed that I can’t get a new bin until the end of the week.”

Her son, Andrew added: “It’s absolutely ridiculous that a 71-year-old woman can drag a bin with one wheel to the end of her long driveway when 6ft tall, 15-stone binmen can’t empty it.

“And I’m also upset that she won’t get another bin earlier. It seems to be all about what suits them.”

A Bolton Council spokeswoman said: “The bin was not emptied due to the missing wheel.

“It will be replaced free of charge next Friday, the delivery day for this area, and any excess waste will also be removed next Friday.”