Police urge public not to misuse 999

Police urge public not to misuse 999

Greater Manchester Police is urging the public not to misuse 999 and is highlighting the correct use of this emergency service.

There is a drastic increase in 999 calls during this time of year, but not all are genuine.

The misuse of the emergency number takes away valuable resources from those people who are genuinely in need of help and potentially puts people’s lives in danger.

Last year on New Year's Eve, GMP took 2,845 calls to 999, doubling a normal day’s average of around 1,400.

Diane Grandidge, GMP’s business lead for call-handling, said: “Every hoax or non-emergency call to 999 causes a delay in answering and dealing with genuine emergencies. 999 is a fast response line for members of the public who urgently need police assistance. Misuse of this service can seriously put lives at risk and we therefore urge the public to consider this before ringing the service with non-urgent matters.

“Over the Christmas period, and in particular on New Year's Eve, Greater Manchester Police receives an increase in 999 calls - for New Year's Eve this is more than twice as many calls as any other night of the year. Our ability to respond to emergency calls can be severely hampered by silly or prank calls, and also by non-urgent requests.

“We want to ensure that there are no delays in responding to an emergency call, therefore we will continue to urge the public to think before they dial 999.”

For general enquiries or to report less urgent crime or disorder, people should call 101.

101 is available 24-hours a day, seven days a week, and there is a single flat rate charge of 15p no matter how long the duration of the call, what time of day it is or whether you are calling from a landline or mobile phone.

This number should be used if, for example, your car has been stolen, your property damaged or you want to report a traffic collision or give police information about a crime.

People should continue to call their local council for things like graffiti, abandoned vehicles, dumping, fly tipping or vandalism.