Police Scotland receives more than 800 accidental phone calls on Christmas Day

Scots kids receiving mobile phones for Christmas are being blamed for more than 800 abandoned phone calls to 999 on Christmas day.

Officers have seen the number people of accidentally dialling emergency services steadily increase and are predicting a surge over the festive season as people get to grips with their new technology.

They are warning us to be more careful as every call needs to be followed up and takes up time on operators who would be handling genuine emergency situations.

Chief Superintendent Roddy Newbigging, C3 Division Commander, said: “We appreciate accidents happen, that children can hit buttons and not understand the consequences.

“But the impact of hundreds of dropped 999 calls a day adds up. Each 999 call has to be investigated to ensure the safety of the caller.

"That ranges from cross-referencing the number on our systems to see if there have been previous calls, to calling back the number. This all takes up time which could be spent handling genuine emergency situations and helping people in times of real distress.

“Our advice is simple – if you call 999 by accident, and the call is answered, please explain what’s happened. It’ll only take a few seconds and will enable the call to be cleared with no issues.”

In a true emergency, Police Scotland can always be reached by dialling 999. If you need police assistance and it’s not an emergency, please call 101.