Four in five calls to police prompts force to issue advice on how to use the 999 service
FOUR in five calls to Thames Valley Police using 999 were not genuine emergencies – now the force is urging residents to think twice before calling.
And last year, more than half of the calls to the non-emergency number 101, were not crime-related or needed an incident logging by officers.
And the force said that in just one week last month, they were called on the 999 emergency hotline by someone who wanted a lift home after missing the last bus of the day.
Another caller said that her parcels were being delivered to the wrong address, while a third called 999 to let police know that he knew it wasn’t an emergency, but he’d found his dog.
Other time wasting 999 calls included a woman who wanted police to collect a handbag she’d found, while a restaurant owner wanted police help because a van was blocking access to her restaurant.
And a man who had locked himself out of his home also called 999 looking for help.
Thames Valley Police says it is raising the alarm over these false alarms as it is experiencing a high demand for its 101 and 999 services and is asking for readers of The Wokingham Paper to spread the word and don’t call 999 unless it really is an emergency.
‘Ask yourself if the call is an emergency’
Chief Superintendent Christian Bunt, Head of Contact Management for Thames Valley Police, said: “We really need the public to take notice and think to themselves is my call an emergency and is my call appropriate for the police?
“Of the 999 calls we received last week only 20% required a Thames Valley Police officer to attend immediately. Meaning that 80% of those callers were inappropriately calling 999.
“This puts people who are in immediate danger at a real risk and could lead to someone not getting the help they so desperately need.”
Thames Valley Police said that it also receive a significant amount of calls to our non-emergency number that relate to non-police matters.
And last year, the force received 1.2 million calls to the 101 service last year, but it says that 52% of them did not result in a crime or need for an incident log to be created.
Now, Thames Valley Police want the public to think twice before calling the police.
Chief Superintendent Christian Bunt added: “We normally expect a seasonal increase at this time of year but the extended period of extremely hot weather has put additional pressure on our call handling service.
“Naturally we are an emergency service and so our priority has to be protecting our 999 service.
“This means we need to dedicate a much higher proportion of our call handlers to answering emergency calls. This does mean that we are not always in a position to provide the normal level of 101 service during peak times.
“We are aware that members of the public may have experienced longer than usual delays getting through on the non-emergency 101 number. However I am sure the public would appreciate that we have to prioritise emergency calls.
“By calling us for non-police matters such as abandoned vehicles, which should reported to either the local authority or DVLA and noise complaints, which should be reported to environmental health, people are further reducing our ability to answer calls that do require a police response.
“Obviously if you urgently need our help, are in immediate danger or need to report a crime or incident that you feel needs a fast response from the police then you should call 999.
“If you need to report a crime that has happened but isn’t in progress then you can report this online via our website www.thamesvalley.police.uk or call 101. Our website also provides information to signpost you to the appropriate agency for non-police matters.
“I would reiterate please think first, is it an emergency or is a crime in progress with risk to life or property? If so then ring 999.
“If it doesn’t fall into these categories, please do not call 999 as you could be stopping someone from getting help who really needs it.”
