Kevin Suddes and Amanda Birchall, of Kirkdale in Spennymoor, appeared at Newton Aycliffe Magistrates Court following legal action taken by Durham County Council.
It followed neighbourhood wardens responding to a report of several bin bags being left on Howsham Road, the entrance to another housing estate in the town.
Inside the bags was household rubbish, some of which had addresses on for Suddes and Birchall.
Letters were sent to the pair asking that they contact the council about the matter. When no reply was received, the council issued Section 108 notices requiring the pair to attend a formal interview.
However, neither Suddes nor Birchall showed up on the interview date.
Suddes told the court that he had cleaned out his garage and arranged for someone to remove the rubbish for him, but he did not check if they had a license to do so.
The 54-year-old pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to take reasonable steps to prevent a fly-tip and another charge of failing to assist with the investigation by not attending an interview.
He was ordered to pay a £500 fine, £455 costs and a £200 victim surcharge, totalling £1,115.
Birchall, 53, pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to take reasonable steps to prevent a fly-tip. She was ordered to pay a £120 fine, £200 costs and a £48 victim surcharge, totalling £368.
Ian Hoult, Durham County Council’s neighbourhood protection manager, said: “Whether disposing of it yourself or hiring someone to remove it on your behalf, your waste is always your responsibility.
“There are lots of ways to dispose of rubbish appropriately in County Durham. Whether that’s through your weekly household waste collections, arranging a collection for bulky waste, or taking items to a Household Waste Recycling Centre (HWRC), there really is no excuse for waste to be dumped.
“We know that fly-tipping is a serious concern among our communities. In this case, someone not taking the time to ensure their waste had been disposed of correctly has meant that another community has suffered. This could have been easily avoided by either using one of the options I’ve mentioned or simply checking the person removing the waste had the correct licence.
“We will continue to investigate and take action against fly-tipping to protect our county from environmental crime.”
