Burglar alarms infuriate residents (From The Northern Echo)

Burglar alarms infuriate residents

5:20pm Sunday 5th July 2009 in

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NOISY burglar alarms are driving residents in one part of Darlington "mad", according to a councillor.

Coun Ian Galletley of College ward, in the West end of Darlington, claims alarms going off in vacant properties are infuriating residents in a number of streets.

He said that one week ago, an alarm in Fife Road had been sounding for nine hours. Another in Stanhope Road had been activated three nights running, intermittently, during the night.

"It is driving them mad, they are at their wits' end," he said. "The police nearly always refuse to get involved, and if people were to take drastic action, they would get arrested for criminal damage.

"They are told to contact the name on the intruder alarm, but lots of them don't have names on them.

"At the weekend you cannot contact the council's noise abatement officer - what are people supposed to do?"

A spokeswoman for Darlington Borough Council issued the following advice, although she conceded that the authority can only intervene during office hours: "Members of the public can contact the council on 01325-388777 to report alarms going off in empty houses.

"The council can, following application to the magistrates' court, and with a locksmith, enter premises to deactivate the alarm."