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Noise complaints › Pinellas County
How to file a noise complaint in Pinellas County
Excessive noise from parties, people or vehicles is handled by the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office: call (727) 582-6200, or 911 for an emergency. That number covers unincorporated areas and many cities.
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Documenting this? A dated log of when the noise started, when it stopped and how loud it got is what Pinellas County acts on. Log noise levels for a complaint — free, runs in your browser, records no audio.
| Quiet hours | Before 7 a.m. or after 11 p.m.; construction limits also run all Sunday |
|---|---|
| How it is enforced | Decibel limits for some noise, other tests for the rest |
| Emergencies | 911 |
| Ordinance | Pinellas County Code Chapter 58 Article XII (Noise) |
Where to file in Pinellas County
Excessive noise from parties, people or vehicles is handled by the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office: call (727) 582-6200, or 911 for an emergency. That number covers unincorporated areas and many cities. To report unreasonably loud and raucous noise to the County in unincorporated Pinellas County, use the sworn, notarized Affidavit of Unreasonably Loud and Raucous Noise, filed through the Pinellas County Access Portal; Code Enforcement is at (727) 464-4761 and 631 Chestnut St., Clearwater. The affidavit must give your name, address and telephone number, the identity and address of the person responsible if known, and a description of the noise, and the County may act on one or more complaints (Sec. 58-446(a)). The complainant must be an identifiable person who lives, owns property or works in the affected area (Sec. 58-446(b)), and by signing you agree to appear at a hearing, which the form describes as appearing in a court of law. For a short-term rental in unincorporated Pinellas County, the County says to call the Sheriff's Office at (727) 582-6200 and the 24/7 Short-Term Rental Hotline at (727) 353-2436. For loud car stereos, the Sheriff's Office also takes reports on its online Lower the Boom form. For barking, Animal Services is (727) 582-2600, option 4; a citation can rest on affidavits from two or more residents in separate dwellings nearby, on one affidavit with photo or video, or on an officer's own observation (Sec. 14-30(b)). Inside a city, Code Enforcement sends you to that city. The County's non-emergency list gives separate police numbers for St. Petersburg (727-893-7780), Clearwater (727-562-4242), Largo (727-587-6717), Tarpon Springs (727-937-6151) and Indian Shores (727-595-5414); the other municipalities on the list use 727-582-6200, and for some of them the Sheriff's Office only dispatches to the local agency. Violations are punishable as provided in Sec. 1-8 of the County Code (Sec. 58-443): unless another law or ordinance provides otherwise, a person convicted faces a fine of up to $500, and each day a continuous violation goes on is a separate offense (Sec. 1-8(c)). The County may also use civil fines or other administrative action, including under Florida Statutes Chapter 162 (Secs. 1-8(d), 58-446(a)), and the Board of County Commissioners may seek an injunction in circuit court (Sec. 1-8(e)). Sources: https://library.municode.com/fl/pinellas_county/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTIIPICOCO_CH1GEPR (Sec. 1-8), https://pinellas.gov/enforcement-codes/, https://pinellas.gov/noise-affidavit, https://pinellas.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Noise-Affidavit2_a11y-ADA-Compliant.pdf, https://pinellas.gov/services/submit-a-code-complaint/, https://pinellas.gov/str/, https://pinellas.gov/animal-services-enforcement/, https://pinellas.gov/non-emergency-phone-numbers/, https://www.pinellassheriff.gov/ContactUs and https://www.pinellassheriff.gov/operation-lower-the-boom.
From the county's official pages and code, verified 2026-11-04. Numbers and departments change; if a line does not answer, the county's main switchboard can redirect you.
Before you call
- Log it. Date, start and end time, what the noise was and where you heard it from. Three dated entries carry more weight than one angry call.
- Measure it if you can. Pinellas County sets measured limits for some noise, so a reading can help, and a dated log counts either way. The free noise log runs in your browser, records nothing, and saves a dated report.
- Check the rule. Quiet hours in Pinellas County: Before 7 a.m. or after 11 p.m.; construction limits also run all Sunday. The Pinellas County noise ordinance page quotes the code verbatim, so you can cite the section.
- Try the source once. A neighbour, landlord or venue manager often fixes it faster than the county does, and telling them first strengthens a later complaint.
What happens after you file
Noise reports often wait behind urgent calls, so a first call may not end the noise that night. What it does is start a record against the address. Repeated reports, a dated log and a reading are what move a case from a warning to a citation. Where the county needs an officer to witness the noise, as most audibility rules require, file while it is happening rather than the next morning.
How loud is it nearby? The St. Petersburg noise map shows the federal transportation-noise data for every neighbourhood, and the apartment quiet hours page compares every city's night rule.
Who do I call for a noise complaint in Pinellas County?
Excessive noise from parties, people or vehicles is handled by the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office: call (727) 582-6200, or 911 for an emergency.
What are the quiet hours in Pinellas County?
Before 7 a.m. or after 11 p.m.; construction limits also run all Sunday. The full rule, quoted from the code, is on the Pinellas County noise ordinance page.
Should I call 911 for noise in Pinellas County?
Only if there is danger, a threat or a crime in progress. For ongoing noise use the non-emergency police line or the department named above; repeated calls build an official record tied to the address, which is what code enforcement acts on.
What evidence helps a noise complaint in Pinellas County?
Pinellas County uses decibel limits for some noise and other tests for the rest, so keep a dated log and take readings when you can; the rules above say which applies.
This page is a plain-language guide to the reporting route, not legal advice. Ordinances and contact numbers get amended; check the linked official sources before relying on a specific provision.
