Parents are being urged to stay on the line if their child accidentally calls police

Parents are being urged to stay on the line if their child accidentally calls police as officers reveal thousands of hours are wasted chasing up abandoned 999 calls.

Northumbria Police have today (Monday 22nd March) revealed their control room received more than 22,000 abandoned 999 calls in 2020.

Every single dropped call needs to be investigated by police to establish whether a person was at risk and an emergency response was needed.

But out of those 22,000 abandoned calls, officers have revealed 8,500 were thought to have been made accidentally and no police response was needed.

This means call handlers and police officers on the ground are spending thousands of hours a year chasing up pocket dials to 999.

And now the Force has called on the public to make sure their phones are locked – and also stay on the line if a child dials the number accidentally.

Superintendent Darren Adams, of the Force’s Communications Department, said:

“We cannot stress enough that the 999 number is for emergencies only.

“This includes when a crime is in progress, someone suspected of a crime is nearby, when there is danger to life or when violence is being used or threatened.

“We understand that accidents happen, but we want people to be conscious that they could be putting other people at risk by tying up police resources.

“So keep your phone safe and out of reach from children and pets and lock your phone before you put it in your pocket or bag.

“We ask that if you or someone else has accidentally dialled 999 please stay on the line and explain what has happened to the emergency service call handler. Do not simply hang up.

“You won’t be in any trouble as we know accidents happen but if you hang up and don’t let us know you’ve called us by accident we may still think there is an emergency situation, trace the call and send officers to you.

“Staying on the line helps us save time tracing the call and means our Call Handlers can be taking emergency 999 calls from those really in need of help.”

Abandoned calls are the sixth biggest incident category for Northumbria Police and those accidental calls could prevent officers from promptly attending a real emergency.

The public are encouraged to dial 999 if a crime is in progress or if there is an immediate risk to person or property.