KEY POINTS:
People living in Auckland and the Bay of Plenty no longer need to go down to their local police station to report crimes when the offender is long gone.
A new non-emergency call service is being launched today at the Northern Communications Centre. It means people with non-urgent complaints can ring their nearest police station and be put through to a dedicated team at the centre, rather than ringing 111 or visiting the station in person.
Call takers will note details of the offence, provide a reference number and either resolve the matter over the phone or refer it to a police officer.
Information about crimes such as burglary, stolen cars, wilful damage and theft will also be recorded in the police database so a picture can be built up that will, it is hoped, help police detect patterns and solve more crime.
Non-emergency number project leader Superintendent Steve Christian said new services would deal with complaints about non-urgent crimes where there was little or no likelihood offenders were still in the area.
These included burglary, theft, stolen and abandoned vehicles, vandalism and graffiti.
"We're asking people to save 111 for emergencies. If you have any doubt at all about your safety, 111 is the number to call. If it can wait, call your local police station," Mr Christian said.
The non-emergency call service was one of the recommendations made by the independent external panel that reviewed the operations of the Police Communications Centres last year.
It will be tried until the middle of next year when a decision will be made about how well it is working.
If it succeeds it will be expanded to cover the country and a dedicated number created for people to ring.
Mr Christian said people could still go to their local police station to report crime if they wanted to but the new service meant they didn't have to.
He hoped it would reduce the number of 111 calls.
Non-emergency calls represent around 63 per cent of the 1.7 million calls to 111 a year going to the three communications centres.
