Sound By-law

Enforcement of the Sound By-law is the responsibility of the City of London. By-law officers are not police officers. If the situation you are reporting is an emergency, please call 911 immediately.

Read the by-law

The City of London recognizes that, at certain times, noise can negatively impact our quality of life and disturb household activities. When Municipal Compliance becomes involved, we hope to achieve a resolution satisfactory to all parties.

To learn more about different types of noise and how to formally submit a complaint view the page below: 

Occupant noise complaints (people, parties, loud music, etc.) 

The City of London Municipal Compliance Office responds to occupant-related noise complaints, such as people, parties, and loud music. To file a complaint, please contact Service London for intake. Municipal Noise Officers will review the complaint and either respond directly or refer the matter to the London Police Service for response, depending on the circumstances. 

Submit a complaint

General noise (construction, equipment, barking dog, etc.) 

To submit a complaint about unreasonable noise from construction, mechanical equipment, alarms, or a barking dog, please contact Service London for intake.

Submit a complaint

Construction and excavation work

• Construction noise is not allowed between 6:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.
• On Sundays, construction noise is not allowed until 9:00 a.m.

Power equipment (such as lawnmowers, chainsaws, and leaf blowers)

• Power equipment noise is not allowed between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.
• On Sundays, power equipment noise is not allowed until 9:00 a.m.

General Noise Process 

• Upon receipt of a complaint, the following process takes place:
• Municipal Compliance sends a notice to the owner/occupant of the property where the concern is located. Sometimes, an owner/occupant may not be aware of a problem and receipt of notice will correct the issue.
• At the same time a notice and log sheet is sent to the complainant from Municipal Compliance. At this stage, all information with respect to the complainant (i.e. name, address) is kept strictly confidential. However, if the noise continues to negatively impact you, the City will require their involvement and cooperation to help bring closure to this matter.
• To gather evidence with respect to the noise which has been brought to our attention, the complainant is required to record the following information in the prescribed format:
  • Type of noise which is disturbing (i.e. dog barking, machinery)
  • How the noise is disturbing (i.e. trying to sleep)
  • the location on their property when the noise disturbed
  • visual information about the source of noise (observed dog barking, type of dog)
  • time of day the noise disturbed
  • how long the noise disturbed
• Once the complainant has gathered the above information as prescribed in the notice, they are requested to contact our office to discuss enforcement action. Please note, that a formal complaint must be registered and notices sent out by Municipal Compliance in order to proceed with enforcement action. This ensures the occupant/owner has ample opportunity to take mitigating measures.
• The information collected will be entered as evidence if by-law charges commence. Should the penalty issued escalate to an appeal hearing, the complainant will be required to testify on the evidence collected in the presence of the occupant/owner of the property from which the noise has disturbed them. The complainant may also be asked questions by the alleged violator or their legal representative with respect to the evidence collected.
• At the discretion of Municipal Compliance, the same process may be applied to other noise disturbances as well.

How to Obtain a Temporary Sound Permit

A temporary sound permit application may be made for sound coming from a construction site, a community event, an outdoor patio or live speech. Review the appropriate application below to identify the required documentation and submit the application package to the City of London Parking Services and Compliance Office.

Forms

Approved locations for Temporary Sound Permit

The following locations have approval for exemption from the Sound By-law for sound resulting from a community event, construction work, or amplified sound coming from an outdoor patio: