FIREFIGHTERS are cracking down on false alarms, which account for almost 13 unwanted call outs every day across North Yorkshire.

North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service received 3,437 calls due to false alarms between April 1 and December 31 last year - 940 more than their target amount of 2,497.

They are taking action against the worst culprits in a bid to halt the increase.

Managers are giving verbal and written advice to all premises which have false alarms and formal meetings are taking place with the worst offenders, according to a report to be heard by North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Authority.

The action comes after the service's record on false alarms was assessed as red - as opposed to green or amber - because it not only missed this year's target, but also fell below last year's.

But, while the number of false alarms is high, the number set off on purpose is fewer than one a day.

Colin Chadfield, head of business risk, said: "Half of all the calls we get in York are from automatic fire alarms."

He said one of the main culprits in the city was its hotels.

"The last thing a hotel wants is its guests standing in the car park at 3am because the alarm has gone off," he said. "But the biggest problem we face is poor management. We get a lot of calls where engineers are working on a system and instead of isolating it they trigger the alarm.

"The other problem is systems which are faulty or not maintained properly.

"We are getting exasperated by the number of calls because our time could be used more effectively. While we are attending a false alarm, there could be a real incident and we are not available to go to it.

"There is also an element of risk simply by driving through traffic with lights and horn on - and that could be reduced by premises looking after their alarm systems properly."

He said they got a lot of calls from Nestlé, because it is so big, and the University of York, because it is such a large campus with alarms in every building. All new students are being given advice on how to reduce false alarms.

Firefighters are also liaising with Army barracks to resolve problems with false alarms, and they are working to improve alarm systems at hospitals.

The report will be heard by the fire authority's performance review committee on Wednesday.