An easily accessible and quickly responding police is important for safety. Of course this can be done for emergencies via the emergency number 112, but the accessibility of the police is also important for non-urgent cases. The latter costs the citizen extra money in addition to the usual telephone costs because the police number 0900-8844 is charged on the bill as an information number.

civic letter

Not an emergency, but police? The number 0900-8844 costs 2 cents per minute, plus the usual calling costs. Unfortunately, the police cannot escape either, according to their own writing in response to questions to the citizens' letter, to find the balance to be accessible to everyone on the one hand and not to let the costs for this be at the expense of the budget for other matters on the other. This balance is now found in the amount of 2 cents per minute that is charged when someone calls 0900-8844. 

Minister Yesilgöz-Zegerius (JenV) sent the House of Representatives a copy of her reply to the citizen's letter about the costs of the national police telephone number. The minister regularly talks to the police about its services. The issue of converting the costs of the number 0900-8844 to the local rate is included in these conversations. Since 2013, companies have had to bear the costs of the 0900 number they use. It is allowed to charge a rate per call. However, this amount may not exceed EUR 1 per call.

no profit

Both fixed and mobile callers pay the usual calling costs of their own provider in addition to the 0900 information rate. The information rate for 0900-8844 was adjusted downwards at the beginning of 2022 and is now 2 cents per minute, plus the usual calling costs. The information rate covers the costs incurred by the police for the provision of services via this number. No profit is made on the rate charged for calling the police number, as is the case, for example, with calling games or companies that use a 0900 number.

Until 2000, the police for citizens was available by telephone for such cases via a local telephone number. In 2000 this number was replaced by the national telephone number, the police number 0900-8844. The great advantage of this type of telephone number is that, regardless of where they are in the Netherlands, they are connected to the police of the region they are requesting. This number can be called if someone wants to get in touch with, for example, the community police officer or with a general question.