Kingsville council to consider bylaw targeting false security alarms

Kingsville is considering fees that rise with offenses in order to limit false alarm calls to 911.

Kingsville council will be asked to approve a new bylaw Monday night to address false security alarms that police say are wasting time and resources.

Provincial police say they are responding to too many false alarm calls in the town, and in one case, a single property had 35 false alarms in about a year.

According to a report, responding to false alarms costs the town about $52,000 annually.

Mayor Dennis Rogers said 40 per cent of the OPP contract is based on calls for service.

“Imagine $52,000 of taxpayer dollars being spent responding to at‑fault false alarms,” he said.

“That’s a significant amount of money, so anytime there’s an issue like this, we’ve got to put bylaws in place to make sure we’re taking care of our taxpayers,” Rogers said.

The town is proposing a fee system:

• First two false alarms each year: free
• Third false alarm: $150
• Fourth and subsequent false alarms: $375 each

Rogers said the goal is to encourage property owners to properly maintain their alarm systems so police resources are not tied up.

“We want to make sure the resources we have are allocated where they need to be,” he said. “If you have repeated false alarms, we’re not being efficient with the dollars we’re spending on our contract, and officers aren’t available for more serious calls.”

Rogers said he plans to raise the idea of involving the Kingsville Business Improvement Area during Monday’s meeting to help educate businesses.

“In terms of businesses knowing about the bylaw that’s been passed, communication through the BIA is an important piece to help share that information and get the word out,” he said.

“If you’re a business that has an issue with repeated false alarms, we’re hoping they’ll take steps to rectify it,” Rogers said.

Lakeshore took similar steps in December 2025 after OPP responded to 265 false alarms over nine months, while Lakeshore Fire Services handled 192 false alarms.

After voting to scrap its voluntary alarm registration program, the municipality moved ahead with a system allowing one free false alarm call before charging $400 for OPP responses and $570 for fire responses.