Audible Intruder Alarms & Noise Nuisance

Environmental Health Officers (EHOs) often receive complaints of noise associated with the persistent ringing of audible intruder alarms installed at domestic premises.

• Upon hearing an alarm, neighbours are likely to contact the police.  Unless an illegal entry has been made into the property, the police will refer you to Fareham Borough Council's Environmental Health officers who are on duty 24 hours a day. Where the alarm continues to ring, the Environmental Health officer (EHO) will try to locate a key-holder.

• Police in Hampshire no longer retain a list of key-holders.

• The EHO will visit the neighbour's home to assess the noise level associated with the alarm. They will also try to find out when the alarm owners are due to return. Should the EHO discover that the owners are likely to be away for more than a few hours, for example, overnight and the noise from the alarm is deemed to be a Statutory Noise Nuisance, formal action will be taken by the officer.

• Formal action will involve the service of a Noise Abatement Notice under the provisions of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

• Subsequent to the service of this Notice, the officer will obtain a warrant for entry into the offending premises from a Magistrate. The officer will arrange for a locksmith and an alarm engineer to visit the property. Entry will then be made into the property and the alarm silenced. All reasonable precautions will be taken to ensure that the property is left secure. However, this does not necessarily mean that the alarm will be reset.

• Any costs incurred by the Council in abating the alarm noise will be recovered from the owner of the appliance. This can amount to several hundreds of pounds particularly on a Bank Holiday weekend.

• It is essential therefore the local Environmental Health department are provided with the names, addresses and 24 hour contact numbers for at least two key-holders who may be contacted whilst the owner is away from the property.   The key-holders should be able to silence the alarm within 20 minutes of receiving the call from the EHO.

• See Form A - Audible Intruder Alarms (66 Kb) .

• In addition, any alarm should be fitted with an automatic cut out device which silences the alarm after a certain period of time, not exceeding twenty minutes. The cut-out device should be supplemented by a flashing light which continues to operate after the ringing ceases, indicating that the premises are still in alarm condition. Where a cut out device is fitted, the householder must inform their insurers.

Should you have any queries regarding noise from intruder alarms, please do not hesitate to contact us by regulatory@fareham.gov.uk or by telephone 01329 236100.

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