A new false alarm strategy is resulting in a reduction in calls for service for the Delta police.
Chief Neil Dubord presented the department’s new alarm response protocol at last week’s Delta police board meeting.
A department analysis showed the DPD attends 1,500 calls annually and spends close to 2,000 hours each year responding to alarm calls, 95 per cent of which are false or cancelled.
“These false alarm calls take up an enormous amount of patrol resources, both in terms of their frequency and the overall time they take officers away from other important duties,” said Dubord.
“The department collaborated with alarm companies operating in Delta and amended its procedures for call response between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. utilizing an enhanced call verification process. This protocol places more responsibility on alarm companies to verify legitimacy of the alarms prior to calling police.”
The new procedures were implemented last December and the data indicated a 37 per cent reduction in calls for false alarms during the first four months and a savings of more than 150 hours of officer time.
