Complaints about excessive noise are investigated by officers who can take action if the noise is considered to be a statutory nuisance.
When is noise nuisance a statutory nuisance?
Noise nuisance is covered by Part III of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. This law empowers local authorities to deal with noise from fixed premises. Before action can be taken we have to be sure that the noise constitutes a statutory nuisance.
This means that we have to prove that the noise is prejudicial to health and/or is causing an unreasonable and persistent disturbance to your lifestyle.
There are a number of different sources of noise pollution and therefore the service is categorised into the following:
- neighbourhood noise (e.g. loud music)
- commercial noise (e.g. noisy machinery, pubs and clubs)
- aircraft noise
Follow the links on the left to find out more about these different types of noise nuisance.