Videos: Hertfordshire Police crack down on hoax callers

WOULD you call the police if you hadn't received the kebab you ordered? The man you can hear in the video above seems to think it's the right decision. He is one of seven people whose hoax and inappropriate calls to 999 have been released this week by

WOULD you call the police if you hadn't received the kebab you ordered?

The man you can hear in the video above seems to think it's the right decision.

He is one of seven people whose hoax and inappropriate calls to 999 have been released this week by Hertfordshire Constabulary, in a bid to cut down on the number of people wasting police time.

As schools close for the holidays, summertime traditionally sees a rise in the number of time wasting calls put into the emergency services.

Some, like in the video above, are dealt with quickly, and require no further investigation.

But others, such as a woman who calls in a phony armed robbery at a post office, led to 13 police units being dispatched to the scene, wasting valuable time and resources.

Superintendent Rob Henry, who manages the emergency call centre at police headquarters in WGC, said: "The summer months are when we have traditionally seen a rise in inappropriate and hoax calls.

"The sound bites we have released demonstrate the type of calls we have had so far this summer."

Police are reminding pranksters that a new tracking system has led to an increase in the number of people arrested for making hoax calls.

For more on this story, get next week's addition of the Welwyn & Hatfield Times, out Wednesday.