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Comment by cm2187 | Hacker News Reader

Funny I had the opposite experience in the UK (London). Some 50-ish cars doing a sort of illegal car tuning gathering under my windows in the middle of the night (midnight). It wasn't the first time and I knew it could last for a couple of hours. Making loud noise with their engines and sound systems. I first went to speak to them and asked them to move around (they were also obstructing the traffic). They just laughed. I then called the non emergency police line, talked to a very nice and courteous officer, whose job seemed to be providing reassuring words but did nothing about it.

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In the UK noise is the purview of councils, not the police.

The police only get involved if it's coupled with other behaviour like threats of violence.

If it's happening regularly you're probably better off going to your local councillor. Also your local area liaison police officer. Even better if you get a few of your neighbours involved.

Yeah, the non-emergency number seems to be a placebo to me - I've never heard of anyone getting any results by ringing it. I'm sure things were better when one used to be able to ring the local station direct.

100% this. We have had a spate of crime, muggings and drug-related issues around our area in the last 6 months or so, the local police & residents have met numerous times about it. Lots of words and "please call the non-emergency 101 number when you see these gatherings" - I then spent an entire HOUR on hold to the 101 before giving up. A couple were mugged later that evening by that very group...

In Los Angeles I’ve used the non emergency line a bunch due to homeless individuals causing issues, and in every case I’ve had a cop come within the hour. I know because they always give me a ring when they are at the location to just walk through what I saw.

My experience doesn’t seem to mirror everyone’s though in LA, so it may have just been the Wilshire division was all over it.

Be thankful you aren't in a country where three successive governments have been pushing "austerity" for a decade, then.

The current one has even had the temerity lately to outright deny that their public sector cuts, which include policing, are in any way related to the obvious rise in low-level crime and disorder here.

I’ve used the non-emergency number when students parties get a bit out of hand and are noisy at 2pm.

They don’t promise anything but ultimately a patrol car wanders by about 30-60 minutes later and quite often they park up and “investigate”.

This usually results in very much quieter parties for the duration of their tenancy.

The force in London is pretty busy, by all accounts. This would definitely be one for the emergency number in smaller towns.

Agree, which is why I would have never used the emergency number. But I am sure a single patrol car passing by and telling them to move on would have been sufficient.

The met typically doesn’t “investigate” unless there are drugs, knives, or “black youths” (I’m not kidding you) involved.

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