National Police Chief’s Council (NPCC) Police Response to Security Systems Policy
The Police in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will only respond to remotely monitored security systems that meet the requirements of the Policy. This policy includes Type A – Remote Signaling Systems terminating at recognised Alarm Receiving Centres (ARCs) and Remote Video Response Centres (RVRCs).
The installation and services provided by the installing company and an Alarm Receiving Centre (ARC) shall be certified by a United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) accredited certification body such as NSI.
The Policy states that the Police will respond to a security system activation either as a result of a confirmed activation through a remotely monitored security system, or where a person at the scene reports an offence in progress and requests police attendance. There are two levels of police response as determined by the NPCC Policy:
- Level One – immediate response (subject to priorities).
- Level Three – response withdrawn.
- Level Three occurs as a result of three false calls to the police for intruder alarms or three from personal attack alarms in a twelve-month rolling period.
Reinstatement can be achieved following identification of the cause of the false alarms and appropriate remedial action having been taken. Level Two – Delayed Response is no longer applied.
To receive police response for a remotely monitored alarm system, any systems installed after June 2012 must conform to PD6662: 2010 and BS 8243.
For more information on the latest NPCC Policy, please go to the following:
Police Scotland – Police Response to Security Systems Policy
There are three levels of response determined by Police Scotland:
- Level One – priority
- Level Two – desirable but dependent on resources
- Level Three – no police response (keyholder attendance required)
If there are four false calls in a twelve-month period, response is reduced to Level Two. To return to Level One, the system problem must be rectified and remain false alarm free for three months. Where a further three false calls occur in the same twelve month period, Level Three occurs.
Both Policies are designed to reduce time wasted by the police responding to false activations from monitored systems. If you want a police response to your system, it is essential that your alarm complies with the policy requirements - otherwise do not expect attendance (other than from genuine 999 calls).
To comply with these Policies, a monitored alarm system must have a police Unique Reference Number (URN) issued against it. In the event of a confirmed activation of your alarm system, the monitoring/alarm receiving centre will contact the police on your behalf and will need to quote a valid URN.
URN's will only be issued for alarm systems meeting the required standards installed by companies who are approved by a UKAS accredited inspectorate accepted by NPCC/Police Scotland.
If an alarm system receives three or more false activations within a rolling twelve month period, response will be withdrawn. Rectifying action will then be necessary to achieve reinstatement.
Please speak to your NSI NACOSS Gold/Systems Silver installer or police crime prevention officer for advice.
Obtaining Police Response
In order to obtain police response in the UK, please be aware you need to use the services of a company holding approval as an installer and maintainer of intruder and hold-up alarm systems.
NSI NACOSS Gold and Systems Silver approved companies employ the services of NSI approved ARCs (Alarm Receiving Centres) to provide 24/7 monitoring and alert the relevant police authority when they believe security has been breached at an alarmed premises (domestic or commercial).
NSI approval gives you confidence in the integrity of the alarm system maintenance and 24/7 monitoring process.
Find NSI approved companies in your area via 'Find a Company' and search for 'Intruder Alarm/CCTV/Access Control' to make sure the company you are using holds NSI NACOSS Gold or Systems Silver approval.
