Urgent assistance
If the noise nuisance you are experiencing is an emergency (for example, a noise happening right now which is causing significant disturbance to a large number of people), please call 01476 406080 during office hours. If the noise is from a car alarm, please get the details of the vehicle make, model, colour and registration number before you call us.
Office hours are 08:45 to 17:15 Monday to Thursday and 08.45 to 16:45 on Friday.
What you can do
If possible, please contact the person responsible for the noise first to discuss it with them. This is often the best way to resolve the problem.
What do we mean by the 'person responsible'?
The person responsible is the person who is causing the noise, or the owner/occupier of the residential or business premises where the noise is coming from.
If the property where the noise is coming from is rented, we recommend you contact the landlord or housing association to report the problem and request they take action.
If you are having difficulty approaching the person responsible for the noise, you could write to them. A letter template with some suggested wording can be downloaded here.
It can help to keep a record of the noise for your own reference. This will also act as evidence if the noise becomes an ongoing problem which you need us to investigate. We recommend you use our noise diary sheets for this, to help you capture the right information. Click here to download.
A further option may be to take your own legal action for statutory nuisance under Section 82 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. This allows a Magistrates' Court to act on a complaint made by any person on the grounds that they are aggrieved by the existence of a statutory nuisance.
What we can do
We can investigate this problem if:
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It cannot be resolved by contacting the person responsible.
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It is causing a statutory noise nuisance. This means it unreasonably and significantly interferes with the use or enjoyment of your home or other premises. You must experience it regularly or for an extended period of time. We do not investigate one-off incidents as these are unlikely to be considered a statutory noise nuisance.
You will need:
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Your address and contact details
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The address of the source of the noise
We cannot investigate anonymous complaints or complaints made on behalf of other people. We will not give out your details, however, it may be difficult to hide who is making the complaint.