DUMPED sofas, mattresses, and piles of rubbish are a “daily battle” for business owners who fear unsightly waste could be putting customers off.

After Southend Council announced a new crackdown that will see cameras installed across the city to target fly-tippers, business owners spoke of their relief that the issue could be resolved... but urged the council to come down hard on offenders.

Using data collected over the last year, the council has identified 10 key areas for fly-tipping including Hamlet Court Road, London Road and Snakes Lane.

Daniel Longman, owner of Aaron Lyons Goldsmith, in Hamlet Court Road, said the problem has been “absolutely horrendous” for the area.

“Just this week I saw about 15 bags of rubbish near one of the bins, and we usually see sofas and mattresses just left around when walking to the shop,” he said.

“It used to be such a nice area, but people don’t care nowadays. Something really needs to be done and I really hope the new investment will help reduce the problem.

“As a business, we are trying to attract people to our area, but the fly-tipping here is absolutely horrendous.

“The new plan can only be a good thing. It’s all well and good having the scheme, but things have to actually get done to avoid people saying it’s another waste of money.”

Jake Smith, a bartender at The Craftsman, on Hamlet Court Road, echoed Daniel’s concerns, and said the daily battle with fly-tippers has left him “frustrated”.

He said: “It’s definitely a big issue and something needs to be done about it.

“The majority of the rubbish that I clean up everyday is not even ours. It’s so frustrating to be tidying up other peoples’ rubbish.

“We do our best to try and clean it up so it isn’t a nuisance to the public. The people that dump it don’t even live here. I’ve seen people drive here, dump their rubbish and leave.

“I hope this new scheme will work, but to be honest there needs to be more done than just putting up a bunch of cameras.

“The cameras will only record the evidence, but it is more important that something actually gets done.”