Businessman handed £3,000 bill after he used his company’s cherry picker to put Union Jack flags up – before council took them all down
A businessman who used his company’s cherry picker to hang Union Jack flags from lampposts has been ordered to pay nearly £3,000 by the council.
Will Haylett, 43, claims he was just trying to ‘lift people’s spirits’ by adding patriotic bunting along Scarborough, North Yorkshire.
But North Yorkshire Council (NYC) couldn’t believe him, sending him a bill demanding £2,785.50 after the local authority took down 64 flags.
A Freedom of Information request has revealed that removing Union and St George flags across the borough has cost the local authority almost £7,000 since July 2025.
Mr Haylett’s cleaning and maintenance firm, Squeeky Clean (Scarborough) Ltd, was billed by authorities for ‘erecting a trespassing flag’.
In a letter to the company, NYC said: ‘On 30/31 October we removed 64 flags in the Scarborough area believed to be your property and you may request that we return them.
‘Assuming you own all the flags this equates to £36.27 per flag plus VAT.’
Mr Haylett said he was ‘shocked and deeply disappointed’ by the bill, adding that ‘there was never any intention to harm, hinder or cause distress’.
Will Haylett, 43, claims he was just trying to ‘lift people’s spirits’ when he used his company’s cherry picker to attach flags to lampposts in Scarborough, North Yorkshire
The boss of the cleaning and maintenance firm was sent an invoice for £2,321.28 plus VAT for the removal of 64 flags
He said: ‘All I was trying to do was bring some community spirit to the area.
‘So many people are struggling and depressed, the flags have really made people smile and lifted morale.
‘I’ve lived in Scarborough all my life. I’ve been traveling around for years and see the locals are demoralized and depressed. I thought, what’s going on?
‘I have a cherry picker so I thought I could help lift people’s spirits by putting a few flags here and there. It was about bringing us all together and making people smile.’
Mr Haylett, who has run an external cleaning and senior maintenance business for 11 years, said he had experienced ‘back and forth’ with the council before receiving the bill.
He said: ‘The council asked me not to put anything on ‘our’ lampposts. I thought, what’s the problem? This all came from one or two leftists.’
Karl Battersby, the council’s corporate environment director, said: ‘Under national legislation it is an offense to affix flags and other materials to lampposts and other highway infrastructure without the council’s permission.
‘This is because they can pose a security issue by blocking or breaking visibility, and often people take the risk of installing them in the first place.
Mr Haylett said he was ‘shocked and deeply disappointed’ by the bill, adding that ‘there was never any intention to harm, hinder or cause distress’.
Mr Haylett said ‘a lot of people are struggling and feeling depressed and the flags really make people smile and lift morale’.
‘A number of our members have also expressed concern about the appearance of the flags.
‘As a result it was right that we removed them and tried to identify those responsible.
‘We are clear about the issues involved and the cost of eliminating them. ‘We will not be commenting further on the matter.’
The total cost to the organization was £6,824.70, but for sites where only one flag was raised the council said it would ‘not charge for the five to ten minutes spent completing this individual task’.
