Before you place a skip on any public highway or road (including a pavement) you need to have a skip permit from the local council. Skip permits exist to control how many skips are placed on the road because they take up space and can impact parking and traffic flow. Not having a skip permit is unlawful, you can be liable to a fine, and the skip could be removed at any time. There is no requirement for a permit if you put a skip on private land, such as your driveway, field or private road.

Skip licenses are normally organised for by the skip hire company, although a few councils require the actual person paying for the skip to order it direct.

The cost of a skip licence varies depending on where you are in the UK. The average cost is around £30. When the skip provider organises the permit on your behalf, they add the permit cost to the overall hire charge. Some also add a small admin fee on top. The table below compares skip permit prices across the areas we cover.

Although you won’t need a permit from the council if the skip is placed in your driveway, you may still require consent from your landlord (check your lease) or anyone else with whom you share that drive with (eg. neighbours). If they aren’t super keen to give you permission, you could always try to persuade them by allowing them to share the skip too!

Enforcement officers regularly check that skips have valid permits, and if an unlicensed skip is found without one you will face a fine. This fine is normally issued to the skip company, but if the local council requires the customer to organise the permit and the customer has told their supplier that it’s been sorted, the skip company can push the fine to the customer. This is why it’s important to always make sure your permit covers your skip hire period.