POLICE have issued guidelines about reporting crimes, including breaches of lockdown rules, during the coronavirus pandemic.

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The force is reminding the public to only call 999 in an emergency, including:

  • A threat to life (including road traffic incidents where someone is injured or the road is blocked)
  • If a situation feels like it could get heated or violent very soon
  • If there a risk of serious damage to property
  • If a serious offence is in progress
  • If there's serious disruption to the public or there could be

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If any of these apply, people are asked to immediately call 999.

People who are deaf or hard of hearing are asked to use the textphone service 18000 or text 999 if they have pre-registered with the emergencySMS serviceExternal Link.

If you're concerned about a business or venue that's open and you don't think it should be, please check the guidance on this first.

Coronavirus

Police are also seeking to resolve situations where people appear to be or are contravening the government advice on physical social distancing and the stay at home measures without resorting to enforcement and issuing fines.

They have advised the public to only let them know about something if they feel there is a significant issue or breach which the police should know about.