Anti-social behaviour

• Loud music.
• Vandalism and damage to vehicles and property.
• Animal nuisance such as dogs fouling, or excessive and persistent barking.
• Misuse of communal areas.
• Nuisance vehicles.
• Using or selling illegal drugs.
• Alcohol related nuisance.
• Arson.
• Violence / weapons.
• Verbal abuse, harassment, intimidating behaviour, or making threats. 
• Other criminal behaviour.

• Cooking/Tobacco smells.
• Noise from babies / children when they’re playing or crying.
• One-off parties such as BBQ’s, birthdays, and parties to celebrate festive or religious holidays providing they don’t cause unacceptable disturbance.
• Looks, stares, clashes of lifestyle, personal differences.
• Comments made on social media (unless they amount to a criminal offence).
• Family disputes.
• Parking. 
• Sound of normal day to day living such as the opening and closing of doors, domestic appliances, and going up and down stairs. 
• DIY carried out during reasonable hours of the day.
• CCTV (including wireless doorbell cameras).

This is not a complete list but can be helpful to consider before making a report of ASB.

Anyone could be a victim of a hate crime. A hate crime/incident can be any criminal or non-criminal act which is perceived by the victim or any other person to be motivated by hostility or prejudice based on a person’s disability, race, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity, or perceived disability, race, religion, sexual orientation, or gender identity. 

A hate crime/incident could be an act such as graffiti, vandalism to a property, name calling, assault, or online abuse using social media.

No hate crime is acceptable. We all have a right to live safely, free from hatred and prejudice.

We take reports of hate crime seriously and can put measures in place to support you to feel safe, refer you to appropriate agencies for specialist advice, and work with those agencies to provide you with the outcome that suits you best.

You can report it to us:

• Online via myMoat
• By email [email protected]
• Webchat 
• or by phoning our Customer Services Team on 0300 323 0011 (Monday to Friday 8am and 5pm)
• Outside of our office hours you can call our ASB Respect Line on 0800 075 66 99

Did you know that our out of office ASB service, Respect Line, also has an app? Quickly report ASB concerns, send us evidence of ongoing cases, and keep us in the loop, whenever it suits you. For more information and to get started, contact us on 0300 323 0011.

You can also speak to your Neighbourhood Services Manager or book an appointment to visit our office and meet with us in person.

If you or someone you know is in immediate danger phone the police on 999. If it’s not an emergency but you’d still like to talk to the police, call 101. If you don’t want to speak to the police directly you can contact Crimestoppers. They’ll take all the info but won’t ask for your name or any other personal details.

In order for us to support you to the best of our ability, we ask that you fully engage with us. This means providing as much detail as possible so we can proceed with your report, complete a risk assessment, offer advice, referrals and signposting, and agree on an action plan before we can investigate your case further.

We understand that speaking up about ASB or hate crime can be worrying, especially if you've been a repeat victim and/or you're a vulnerable person.

We'll seek your consent before revealing your identity to the person you're reporting. If you don't consent, we'll tell you whether we're able to progress your report without you being identified. Due to the nature of some reports, it can be obvious who it has come from.

You can choose to remain anonymous, but we’ll be unable to provide you with regular case updates and it may limit our ability to resolve the report.

We want everyone living in our homes and communities to feel safe and supported. We'll respond to a customer's report where there is significant risk to their personal safety within one working day. All other reports of ASB will be responded to within five working days. 

Dedicated officers from our Neighbourhood and Customer Services teams assess and prioritise new cases daily so we can respond quickly to get you the help you need - which will be tailored to each case individually.

When you report ASB to us, we can provide different levels of support and action, including:

• Visiting you to better understand your situation.
• Visiting the alleged party and any witnesses.
• Providing you with our free ASB App to document evidence and explain how and why we need this.
• Keeping you updated and being clear about what we can do
• Offering free independent mediation to all involved to try and find a resolution.
• Referring you or your neighbour(s) to services who can provide additional or specialist support.
• Considering additional home safety measures if needed.
• Setting up Good Neighbour or Acceptable Behaviour Agreements to encourage neighbourly behaviours.
• Working together with partners in the community like the police, community safety partnerships, and support agencies to find a resolution.
• Issuing warnings and taking legal action, usually in partnership with the police and/or local authority. Legal action will only be considered when all other avenues have been exhausted.

Please read our policy for more information on how we will manage your report of ASB.

Mediation is a voluntary process in which an impartial mediator, who is specially trained, helps people to discuss problems and look for solutions. We use independent mediation services. Mediation can help to resolve many of the ASB reports we receive. We may ask parties to agree to participate in mediation where appropriate and will continue to encourage them to do so throughout our investigation.

Sometimes, where mediation isn't agreed, there may not be any other reasonable steps we can take to resolve the report. We'll always be sure to communicate this with you from the start.

We have a responsibility to make sure that all residents can enjoy their home safely and in peace, without experiencing ASB. If you feel there is more that we can do to resolve your ASB report, please tell us and we can investigate it as part of our internal complaints process.

Alternatively, you may contact your local authority who can review our response to reports of ASB using a process called an ASB Case Review (also known as a Community Trigger).

The threshold for activating an ASB Case Review is: 

• Three or more complaints made to us in the previous six-month period.
• The persistence of the anti-social behaviour.
• The harm, or potential harm, caused by the anti-social behaviour.
• The adequacy of response to the anti-social behaviour by us.

The threshold is decided by the relevant local authority and each area chooses a lead agency to manage the process, usually the council or police.  Please contact your local authority for more information. 

You should only use the ASB Case Review if we have not taken any action after you have repeatedly reported the ASB to us. Activating the ASB Case Review does not interfere with your right to follow our internal complaints procedure; both processes can run at the same time.

Moat works in partnership with agencies, including the police and local councils, to tackle and resolve cases of ASB. We will engage fully with the ASB Case Review.

• Gov.uk – on this website follow links to your postcode area where you will find details of your local council and local services
• Childline – Freephone 0800 11 11
• NSPCC – 0808 800 5000
• Crimestoppers – Freephone 0800 555 111  
• Stop Hate UK – Freephone 0800 138 1625
• Citizens Advice – 0800 144 8848
• Victim support – 0808 168 9111
• Talk to Frank – 0300 123 6600
• ASB Help - 0808 1689 111