Refuse firm 'Lord of the Bins' ordered to scrap name

Refuse firm called Lord of the Bins with tagline ‘One Ring to Remove It All’ is ordered to scrap its name by Lord of the Rings lawyers

• Nick Lockwood and Dan Walker also told to change their website and slogan
• The Brighton-based bin collection firm hits back saying they can’t afford to fight

A two-man waste clearance firm named ‘Lord of the Bins’ has been ordered to dump its name by Lord of the Rings lawyers.

Brighton-based business owners Nick Lockwood and Dan Walker, both 36, were told in a letter to stop all use of the Lord of the Bins name, including on their website and social media pages by February 1. 

In the letter, seen by MailOnline, they were also told to stop using their slogan One Ring to Remove It All in order to avoid any formal action being taken. 

The letter was served on January 18 by law firm Simmons & Simmons, acting for Middle-earth Enterprises, who owns the worldwide stage, film and merchandising rights to The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy written by J.R.R. Tolkien.

But the small business owners have hit back insisting ‘we just wanted to make people smile’ and ‘want both creative companies to live on together’. 

They argue they are just trying to make a living and doubt people will confuse them with Lord of the Rings. 

Brighton-based business owners Nick Lockwood and Dan Walker, both 36, were told in a letter to stop all use of the Lord of the Bins name

The letter sent by Simmons & Simmons accuses the waste company of using fonts and graphics which reproduce those in The Lord of the Rings films

‘We are two guys who grew up together and went to school together in Brighton. We are self funded and can’t afford a court battle,’ Mr Lockwood told MailOnline. 

‘We are facing the prospect of having to completely rebrand. For a small business it could have a detrimental affect moving forward. 

‘It’s going to be easily £5,000 and above. We will survive I’m sure, but the impact will last a long time. 

‘We have put our heart and soul into this business. To think it could be taken away from us is distressing, we have had stressful nights talking to solicitors. 

‘This is both of our livelihoods. We are between a rock and a hard place. We can’t afford to fight this legally in a court. 

‘I’m hoping we can make enough noise so that it gets taken away from a legal conversation.’

He said they both of them have young children and it is stressful to think of the impact this could have. 

Mr Lockwood earlier told The Sun: ‘If we don’t turn up on time, no one’s going to chuck their Lord of the Rings DVD in the bin. 

The Brighton-based pair say they just ‘wanted to make people smile’

‘And if they bring out a box-office smash, I don’t think more people are going to ring up for waste collection.’ 

Lord of the Bins collects household, building and office waste in Brighton, East and West Sussex.

The letter sent by Simmons & Simmons accuses them of using fonts and graphics which reproduce those in The Lord of the Rings films. 

‘Your activity amounts to an infringement of our client’s trademark rights,’ it adds. 

Lord of the Bins collects household, building and office waste in Brighton, East and West Sussex

 ‘We are facing the prospect of having to completely rebrand. For a small business it could have a detrimental affect moving forward,’ Mr Lockwood said

On Twitter, the waste collection firm posted: ‘Lord Of The Bins is unfortunately facing the prospect of having rename and rebrand the company! 

‘Middle earth enterprises (lord of the rings franchise) has sent, and is enforcing a cease and desist, claiming we’re in breach of their trademarks. 

‘Thousands of pounds and effort rebranding, to appease a multi billion pound company. 

‘We will survive this storm and continue providing a great service for our city, whatever our name. Our last hope is making enough noise to help them see sense. So please share, repost.’ 

‘We will survive this storm and continue providing a great service for our city, whatever our name,’ the business owners said

They say in their spare time they clear fly-tipping for local residents at their own cost and support many charities

On their website they describe how Lord of the bins was created by two separate waste clearance companies ‘who came together with a vision to make a difference in an industry with a bad name’. 

‘With a heavy focus on sustainability and recycling, we ensure that 97% of waste is diverted from landfill and set processes to ensure everything possible is recycled.’

They say in their spare time they clear fly-tipping for local residents at their own cost and support many charities. 

MailOnline has reached out to Middle-earth Enterprises and Simmons & Simmons for comment. 

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