PEOPLE plagued by noisy neighbours from hell had a "smashing" time in Southamp-ton yesterday

Residents got their own back on noisy stereo equipment by taking a sledgehammer to speakers and amplifiers - helped by the city council's environmental health staff.

The organised destruction derby of confiscated hi-fi equipment was staged to coincide with National Noise Awareness Day.

The equipment was confiscated by the council's out of hours service from people who played their records too loud after persistent complaints about noise..

The council stresses that if people in the city have a domestic noise problem, officers can help, whether you are an owner occupier, council tenant, a housing association tenant or private landlord.

Officers also deal with noise from pubs and clubs as well as other commercial premises.

In persistent cases, officers would need to assess the noise before taking any enforcement action, such as serving an abatement notice.

In extreme cases, officers can seize and confiscate equipment, most commonly hi-fis.

The council's Cabinet member for environment and transport Councillor Jill Baston said: "It is not always easy to complain if you have a noisy neighbour problem and noise nuisance can be very difficult to live with.

"The highly valued extended out of hours service can step in as a third party if noise levels are unacceptable and residents find it awkward to deal with noise problems."

During the last 12 months, the environmental health service has received 1,350 daytime complaints about noise and 3,300 contacts to the out of hours service.

This has led to 224 noise abatement notices, nine seizures of hi-fi equipment and 23 successful prosecutions and eight court cases pending.

Anyone wishing to complain about noise should contact environmental health services on 023 8083 2531 during office hours. Callers are given an access number for the out of hours service.