POLICING

Crime victims forced to wait hours despite urgent calls to police

Evidence is being put at risk by long response times
Matt Dathan
, Home Affairs Editor
The Times
The Liberal Democrats said the figures showed that frontline policing had been neglected, leaving forces overstretched and under-resourced
The Liberal Democrats said the figures showed that frontline policing had been neglected, leaving forces overstretched and under-resourced
LEON NEAL/GETTY IMAGES
Matt Dathan
, Home Affairs Editor
The Times

Police are taking an average of five hours to respond to priority calls, risking time-sensitive evidence and witnesses being lost, figures show.

Gloucestershire police recorded the longest average response time last year, taking 18.5 hours to respond to grade-two incidents, according to freedom of information requests by the Liberal Democrats.

Forces aim to respond to these priority calls within about an hour because they relate to incidents that require an urgent response by police but with no imminent risk to life. The crimes include burglaries, domestic abuse and grievous bodily harm, where a suspect may still be in the vicinity or evidence is at risk of being destroyed.

Sir Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, said the long waits were “unforgivable”
Sir Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, said the long waits were “unforgivable”
STEFAN ROUSSEAU/PA

Derbyshire police recorded an average response time of 15 hours for category-two calls last year. Avon &