An Aussie has been left fuming after he was threatened with a $10,000 fine for using his air conditioner at night because it’s too noisy.
George said he has been informed he is not allowed to run his heating or cooling system at his Artarmon property, on Sydney’s lower north shore, after 10pm.
He claimed to have received a notification from Willoughby City Council warning him that he was also prohibited from using it before 7am.
‘Warning letter: Noise disturbance’ was written across the top of the letter.
‘I called council and asked them, “What do you want me to do for heating and cooling”,’ he told 2GB on Wednesday.
A resident in Artarmon, in Sydney’s lower north shore, was threatened with a massive $10,000 fine by a local council, if he kept is air conditioning unit on after 10pm at night (pictured stock image)
George said he was also sent an email from the council, claiming he would be hit with a $10,000 fine.
According to the 2017 Protections of the Environment Operations Regulation, it is an offence to use an air conditioner that cases a noise disturbance.
‘The person causes or permits an air conditioner to be used on residential premises in such a manner that it emits noise that can be heard within any room in any other residential premises,’ the law states.
The legislation states that the rule applies whether or not the door or window to the room affected by the noise, is open between 10pm and 7am on weekdays.
The rule is also in place between 10pm and 8am on the weekends and public holidays.
The maximum penalty issued to those who commit the offence is $11,000.
Wakehurst Independent MP Michael Regan, who was also the mayor of the Northern Beaches, said his office used to receive multiple noise complaints about air conditioners.
‘Our customer service team would probably receive several [complaints] a day,’ he said.
Mr Regan said it was not uncommon for residents to complain about air conditioners in neighbouring properties, particularly if the houses were really close.
According to state government rules in NSW, a person can be fined a maximum penalty of $11,000, if an air conditioning system causes a disturbance to a neighbouring property (pictured stock image)
‘There were legitimate noise concerns, [like] those air conditioners from Woolworths where you can plug them into your windows, they would make a lot of noise and they would be a metre or two away from a bedroom window,’ Mr Regan said.
Air conditioning units reach 35 decibels on average and the systems should not be louder than 40 decibels, which is the average level of background or ambient noise.
Residents do not need a building or planning approval if a proposal to install an air conditioning unit complies with development regulations, which are specified in the State Environmental Planning Policy 2008.
Daily Mail contacted Willoughby City Council for comment.