Households whose rubbish ends up being dumped illegally by unauthorised disposal companies could face fines under plans being considered by the government.

Councils could be given the power to directly fine people caught using unlicensed waste carriers following a consultation by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

This would spare local authorities the cost of chasing problem homeowners through the courts, and encourage people to check their refuse is being disposed of legally. Guidance would be issued on how such fines should be applied to stop councils abusing it to raise extra cash, Defra said.

The measures, which could be brought in by spring 2018 following a vote in parliament, form part of a government drive to thwart fly-tippers and shut down illegal waste sites.

More than 1m incidents of fly-tipping were dealt with by councils in England in 2016-17, costing taxpayers £58m in clean-up charges, according to figures released by Defra.

More than 850 illegal dumping grounds were uncovered by the Environment Agency over the past year, with an average of two closed each day, according to the government.

Thérèse Coffey, the environment minister, said: “Waste crime and fly-tipping blight our communities and spoil our countryside, and we need determined action to tackle it.

“These new powers for the Environment Agency (EA) will curb the rise of waste sites that continue to operate outside the law. But we must all take responsibility for our waste to make sure it does not end up in the hands of criminals who will wilfully dump it.”

Defra said the consultation, launched on Monday, would also examine how crime and poor performance in the waste sector could be combated. This could include a tightening of the requirements for EA waste permits, as well as promoting awareness about which sites are legal.

Emma Howard Boyd, who chairs the Environment Agency, welcomed the new powers, which will enable the agency to block access to problem sites to prevent illegal waste building up. Operators at the sites also face being forced to clear all the waste there, not just illegal disposals.

She said: “This will allow us to take faster action against criminals and will make a real difference to communities, but everyone has a role to play. We all need to check our waste is going to the right place and is handled by the right people.”