Police were called out more than 900 times last year after vulnerable residents hit their panic buttons, new figures have found.

The alarms are provided by the force to protect victims of crime and witnesses who may be at risk.

But in the majority of cases the calls were found not to be serious.

Data obtained by the Kent Messenger reveals that on 634 occasions, officers discovered no evidence of crime, with the alarms often activated in error or by a power failure.

Police say they remain committed to answering all alarm calls, despite two thirds of calls being closed with no evidence of crime.

Ch Supt Nikki Faulconbridge said: “Kent Police does not categorise alarm activations as being “real” or “false”.

"All alarms are monitored and activations are responded to.”

Currently there are more than 600 temporary police alarms installed across the county.

Each one costs the force £118.

Ch Supt Faulconbridge explained: “A temporary police alarm is a piece of equipment that is installed where there is a necessity to protect a victim or witness.

“There is no set criteria for where such alarms are installed or for how long.

"Each request is considered on a case-by-case basis and is routinely reviewed over the duration of its installation.”

In 2017, the force was called out 914 times via temporary police alarms.

In Maidstone, that figure drops to 42, the same number as Sevenoaks.

Only Tunbridge Wells, 35 and Tonbridge and Malling, 31, are lower, with Medway recording the highest at 166 for the year.

Kent Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Scott said: “One of my Safer in Kent Plan’s guiding principles is that vulnerable people must be protected from harm.

"Issuing temporary police alarms, where they are deemed appropriate, is one way in which Kent Police achieves this and the scheme has my full support.

“In addition, I fund victim support to provide victims with other personal security items such as panic alarms, letterbox guards, burglary alarms, CCTV and property-marking kits as part of my commitment to supporting all victims of crime and abuse.

"These are allocated by victim support based on each individuals’ needs.”

While police were called out hundreds of times by temporary alarms last year, not all were urgent.

In fact, the vast majority were made in non-emergency circumstances and closed under six non-emergency codes.

These codes included alarms triggered due to a weather related issue, power failure, and alarms being misused or triggered in error.

The remaining three codes used relate to no crime or domestic incident being evident upon investigation.

Of the 42 alarms triggered in Maidstone, 26 were found to fall under the codes listed above, leaving 16 serious incidents.

In Tonbridge and Malling, 17 of the 31 call outs were listed under the codes as were 29 of the 35 signals in Tunbridge Wells.

Police maintain there are no such thing as “false alarms,” and that when each alarm is triggered it is dealt with hastily to prevent any potential harm to witnesses or victims.

Forces also maintain that temporary police alarms should not be viewed as a replacement to other household security systems such as CCTV cameras and door locks.