Blogs

We don't give ETA's, but here is the common phrase we all use.  "They are coming as quickly and safely as possible."

We don't because it is considered a promise or guarantee. We do reassure callers that help is on the way when they are, and provide general guidelines for delayed calls, i.e., "It could be anytime between now and several hours, so if you need to leave - call back and let us know." They are taught from the time of classroom not to promise. We also call back on overdue calls, so we can adjust the caller's expectation if a call goes over several hours.

Meghan,
I agree with John's comments, it is not a good idea or policy to give eta's to callers. I have always advised my trainees not to do it. My recommendations is "an officer/fire department/ems will be there as soon as possible" Hope this helps.

I have a small center(11 dispatchers, 2 per shift) To reduce the potential liability, My agency does not provide ETA's.

Meghan,
This article may be helpful regarding the question you posed. We do not provide specific ETA's due to the "special relationship" issue that exists. In short, if you tell a caller that the PD/FD/EMS will be there in X amount of time, and then they are not and the caller or patient suffers an adverse outcome, it is quite possible that your agency will have exposure and liability due to the caller or patient relying on what was told to
them.
http://www.soningenis.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/The-411-on-911-Litigation-Proving-Municipalities-Liability.pdf