Noisy neighbours during coronavirus plague the Netherlands

Reports of noise nuisance have been higher than ever before since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, according to police figures.

From March 2020 to February 2021, general reports of noise nuisance across the Netherlands hit 186,958, a growth of almost two-thirds on the same period a year earlier.

Almost all of the noise nuisance was apparently neighbourhood noise: 98% of the complaints (183,671) were not noise from bars or events, which are measured separately.

With bars closed and events cancelled, the country implored by prime minister Mark Rutte to work from home, and a boom in building work, complaints about neighbourhood noise spiked.

In the province of Zuid-Holland, people were the most disturbed by noisy neighbours, followed by Noord-Holland and then Noord-Brabant.

Neighbourhood mediation service Beter Buren has said that the number of requests to its helpline increased dramatically after the coronavirus pandemic began, and recommended some simple measures: let neighbours know about building work, make agreements about times for noisy activities, and work together to improve noise insulation.