FALSE alarms from workplaces in Renfrewshire cost the fire service well over half a million pounds in the final quarter of last year as they rocketed by almost a third.

According to a report on activity from the start of October to the end of December, unwanted fire alarm signals (UFAS) shot up by 29% compared to the same three-month spell in 2020, with 274 recorded.

It was the highest level reported for the period in the last five years and cost the service £539,780.

Most false alarms came from high schools, hotels, warehouses, hospitals and care homes.

These types of premises normally have an automated fire detection system to provide an early warning of a blaze but the vast majority of signals omitted are fake and this leads to crews being called out unnecessarily.

However, it is hoped the cost can be reduced dramatically in future as changes are implemented by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) next year.

Following a public consultation, the service has said that, from April 2023, it will establish whether an automatic alarm has been triggered by an actual fire before a crew is sent out, although the likes of hospitals and care homes will be exempt.

Area commander David McCarrey, SFRS local senior officer for Renfrewshire, said this should mean there is more time to carry out other activities such as training and improving road safety.

He added: “False alarms are an unnecessary drain on our resources and present an undue risk for our firefighters and the public from appliances responding to these calls under blue light conditions.

“This is why we recently held a public consultation which provided people with three options to safely reduce these numbers.

“Most stakeholders supported Option A, which means the SFRS will establish if automatic fire alarms in workplaces have been triggered by an actual fire before sending any appliances.

“Businesses will also experience less disruption as they no longer need to wait for us to attend to give the all-clear after a false alarm.”

Overall, false alarms in Renfrewshire – which also includes those from homes and those activated with good intent – went up by 19% between October and December compared to the previous year, with 476 recorded.