Send her an email please collect by 31st March. Then on the weekend before the 31st send another email saying "Thank you for collecting your gear today".
I like this !!!
Seriously you sound like you are robustly honest. I used to be like that.
In the current situation you have given her a paper trail to prove she has goods left there, and hence you are now locked in to doing things by the book (ie as per the legislation in the link given earlier).
Next time something like this happens, don't communicate with the other party but do some quiet reading around whatever the matter is. You need to know the rules in order to creatively break them.
For example, if the same thing happened to me, I would find the legislation first. This might take a few weeks/months and it gives your mind time to consider all perspectives. eg are an ex partner's goods left behind when they did a runner 'abandoned goods' or are they covered by some other legislation?
I would carefully inspect the goods and slowly, 1 plastic grocery bag each week, begin disposing of the 'rubbish' items. Resist the urge to have a ceremonial bonfire in the backyard with a party for the neighbours.
Slowly over time, anything of higher value that a charity would take (ie no electricals) can be handed in to various charities. Again, slowly bit by bit. As you nibbble away at the edges, you'll find the problem starts to resolve itself.
Hopefully there won't be any Renoirs. If she were to contact you and want XYZ back, you can then truthfully say you "haven't seen it for a long time".
I used to be scrupulously honest but have given it away, all it does is put me at a disadvantage. I'm not cavalier but I'm tired of laws being used against the honest/lawabiding while the other mob do well out of those same laws.
