Video by: Gabriella Petty
A woman rang 999 to complain that she’d been sent three portions of saveloy and chips instead of one.
It was among more than 25,000 time-wasting calls received by the Met Police in London this year.
A recording of several 999 calls where the incident being reported was far from an emergency – many of them verging on the bizarre – has been released by police chiefs.
Among the more ridiculous calls was a woman who phoned the emergency hotline to complain that she had been sent three portions of saveloy and chips from her local chippy, instead of one.
In the recording, the woman can be heard saying: “I only ordered one saveloy and chips. They have sent me three saveloy and chips.”
Other calls singled out for time-wasting by the police include a man who phoned 999 to ask what time it was, and another who called to complain that a packet of biscuits he had bought were out of date.
Officers said that the calls, as well as wasting police time and resources, potentially put Londoners in life or death situations at risk.
Between January 1 and November 30, the Met’s Command and Control call centre received well over two million calls.
Of those calls, more than 25,000 were hung up on by call handlers after being identified as a hoax.
People in non-urgent situations who need the police are encouraged to call 101, rather than 999, or tweet the Met.
Chief Superintendent David Jackson, who is in charge of call handling for the Met, said: “Although these calls can be perceived as amusing, they are actually a huge waste of the Met’s resources.
“These hoax calls block the number from other members of the public who could be calling 999 in a real emergency, keeping people in danger waiting for longer and putting lives at risk.”
He added: “If you are in a situation where you need to speak to the police, please think.
“The use of the 999 system is for emergencies only and we have other channels where you can speak with us.”
