Non emergency calls to the old bill .. Poll

[VicS]

Prompted by the comments on the MMSI usage thread on R to R about dialling 999 due to lack of paracetamol or toilet paper i was wondering how many people actually know the national non-emergency number for calling the police

 

[maxi77]

I have both my home plod shop and the local GNR here in Portugal in my phone. Mind you the only times I have called the police it has been a 999 situation.

 

[Twister_Ken]

Whitehall 1212?

 

[Flossdog]

Useful to know it! Was once cruising the north Pembrokeshire coast and we saw a small foreign coaster tucked in under the cliffs. Phoned the number and reported it as suspicious and was phoned back by HM Coastguard thanking me but saying that they knew about it. The coaster was apparently "awaiting instructions" from their agent. I didn't want to use vhf to call the coastguard as they could have been monitoring it and might have despatched a fast RIB to sort us out!

 

[VicS]

The national number is not is use everywhere yet but it should be in use throughout England and Wales by the end of Jan IIRC.

Dunno what's happening in Scotland.

 

[Cardo]

Interesting that nobody's thought to mention so far in this thread what the new non-emergency number actually is? (In England, at least)

 

[daveyw]

Umm, ***(edit) from Jan 2012

 

[Bosun Higgs]

Is there such a number?

 

[OLLIE45]

Yep there is such a number active here in Suffolk. We were told about it when it was launched. Blowed if I know what it is though.
Anyway, 999 appears to be the non-emergency number for the police, last time I rang it because there were a bunch of teenagers roaming round the woods behind our house setting fire to the fallen trees, drinking and despite the fact that one even had a rifle, it still took just under an hour for anyone to turn up and then it was a lone female copper who told us that the closest backup was over 20 miles away.

 

[Kilter]

101

 

[dleroc]

Years ago at dusk I saw a small boat set off a flare just outside Plymouth Breakwater. I went to the phone box and dialled 999 and asked for the coastguard (as it said on the phone box). The operator didn't know what I was talking about. After I explained what was happening I was put through to the police!

On another occasion I witnessed a chap being beat up by two thugs outside my Doctors Surgery. I ran inside and told them to phone the police. I went outside again to see to the injured bloke whilst the two thugs ran away.

We waited and after about 5 minutes I went into the surgery again. They said that they were still trying to look up the number!!!!

I said what do you think 999 is for, and their reply was that was only for emergencies!

 

[Abestea]

An experience i had a few years ago was when i called 999 after someone had crashed into my car and driven off leaving it in an undriveable state.

I was told that i should not phone this number unless it was an emergency. I should call the local police station. Well as MY local police station is no where near the place i was, i had not a clue where the nearest police station was never mind what its telephone number.

I honestly thought that the quickest way to get in contact with the police was to call 999. Isn't that what the number is for? Now from what they told me about contacting my closest police station, i can understand if i was close to home and i know where the station is but it is difficult when you are somewhere completely different.

 

[VicS]

Somebody being beaten up is a 999 situation.

reporting a damaged or stolen car is a 101 situation.

See http://www.police.uk/101

 

[Abestea]

Ah now i didn't know about 101. That would have been handy but even then i wasn't even told this number by the 999 people.

But as i am typing this i am also looking through the faq's. It says it is only available in England and Wales. Not available in Scotland. http://www.strathclyde.police.uk/index.asp?locID=264&docID=-1 this is what we have to do here for Strathclyde Police.

 

[Seajet]

Don't hold our breath...

Last year a gang of yobs stole a tender from our club, after breaking up the locked steel trolley of another while attempting to steal it.

A member called 101 ( I was there ) and gave the police a running commentary on the scrote's progress - say 30 minutes - and where they would be landing ashore.

Zero reaction from plod, when it was handed to them on a plate.

When my car was stolen from nearby - in the days before 101 - I was simply given a crime number for insurance purposes, despite it being obvious the car must have been on the road at the time, and it might have been a bright idea to tap the registration into their wonderful computer kit in their flashy 'interceptor' cars.

Several other incidents of boat break-ins also unattended; this is how vigilantes start

 

[Pasarell]

About a year ago, and well after 101 was publicised in our area as the way to call the police in non emergency situations, the alarm started sounding in a small office builclose to us. Couldn't see anything wrong from outside so called 101. After about a minute of ringing I thought maybe it wasn't going through correctly so put the phone down and dialled again. This time I left it ringing for 40 minutes without answer. Then I called 999 and proceeded to get a lecture from the police about using 101 - before they would let me say what I was calling about!

 

[prv]

A member called 101 ( I was there ) and gave the police a running commentary on the scrote's progress - say 30 minutes - and where they would be landing ashore.

Zero reaction from plod, when it was handed to them on a plate.

A crime currently in progress is 999, surely?

Pete

 

[Cardo]

When my car was stolen from nearby - in the days before 101 - I was simply given a crime number for insurance purposes, despite it being obvious the car must have been on the road at the time, and it might have been a bright idea to tap the registration into their wonderful computer kit in their flashy 'interceptor' cars.

Vehicles are flagged "LoS" (Lost or Stolen) as soon as they're reported stolen. They then ping up if scanned by an ANPR camera (be it fixed or on a traffic vehicle).

 

[robertj]

why do you want this poll?

 

[Seajet]

A crime currently in progress is 999, surely?

Pete

Pete,

we didn't rate a stolen dinghy and trashed trolley worth a few £100 as a life or death situation, so didn't think it worth a 999; sadly the police didn't think it worth any call at all !

Cardo,


the car theft was a few years ago; who knows, the police may even bother about such things nowadays.

Doesn't apply to my & my fathers' & friends' boats being broken into though, at mine the only active move from the WPC eventually attending ( the 5-6 boats 'done' ) was to ask for a piece of my alarm as a souvenir !