If there is a drone that’s flying recklessly or being a nuisance over your property then you have every right to disable them. We all deserve a little peace and quiet! But how exactly should you go about “disabling” the drone? Unfortunately, it might not exactly be the way you want to do it.
Here’s the best way to legally disable a drone over your property:
- Know your rights so that you know what to report them for.
- Don’t shoot it, otherwise, the law will turn against you.
- Talk to the drone owner, they may not know you’re unhappy.
- Report the drone to your local Flight Standards District Office.
- Call the police if they’ve ignored all your pleas.
Ready to stop that drone from being a nuisance once and for all without getting yourself into trouble? Let’s dive deeper into the points I mentioned above by getting started with step 01.
01. Know Your Rights
Before reporting a drone it’s worth mentioning the rights you have as a property owner or resident. You’ll need to know this to see if can legally report it.
FAA Drone Laws
The FAA has imposed some important drone laws that are designed to make drone pilots fly in a safe manner and to not be a nuisance to neighbors. So if you’re here reading this article, then chances are they aren’t following these laws.
Here are some FAA drone laws that protect you:
- May not fly in a careless or reckless manner. This includes being a nuisance. If they keep bothering you at your home then this is more than likely the drone law that you can report them for.
- Drone operators may not fly over a person or moving vehicle.
- Drone pilots may not drink or do drugs and fly.
- They should give way to manned aircraft.
- Not allowed to fly over 400 feet.
State, County and City Drone Laws
On top of that, you also have your state, county, and city-level drone laws that all pilots need to be aware of. If they break any of these, then you’re within your rights to report them.
These laws depend on the area you live in, however just to give you an idea, most states have privacy laws that ban drone pilots from taking images or videos of private property without the owner’s prior permission. So if you can prove that they’re doing this, then you’ll be within your legal rights of reporting the drone.
If you want to learn more about your state and city drone laws, then find your local state or county website, or you can even google “your state or county drone laws.” The first few results should give you all the information you need
Can You Shoot Or Destroy A Drone Over Your Property?
Unfortunately shooting a drone out the air is not an option as discovered by this man in New Jersey. This holds true for ALL states in the United States. And it doesn’t just stop with guns, it also includes tampering with a drone in flight at all, like spraying it with a hose, disabling it with a GPS blocker, and even shooting it with a nerf gun.
The airspace above your home belongs to the FAA, so tampering with a drone will be seen the same as tampering with an aircraft. There’s one caveat to this, the second a drone lands or takes off from your property, they are considered to be trespassing, which again is against drone laws.
Now if you can’t shoot a drone out of the air, what real options do you have to stop this nuisance? Below I’ll cover some legal options you have to “disabling” a drone over your property.
Talk To The Drone Owner
The first step is simple, but it’s often overlooked. If you know the drone owner, then knock on their door and kindly let them know that their drone is bothering your peace, and you would appreciate it if they don’t fly over your property. Often times drone pilots are completely unaware that they are annoying neighbors, and they might even appreciate it if someone lets them know.
INSIDER TIP: If there’s a specific time of the day that you would prefer they don’t fly their drone at all, you could even make them aware of that. Or you could offer to make a Whatsapp group for all your neighbors. This will give the drone operator a means of communication to let the entire neighborhood know when he plans to fly his drone. That way if a baby is sleeping, for example, you could notify the drone pilot before he launches.
Most of the time your problem should end here. But what if they ignore your plea, or they laughed at your Whatsapp group idea? Well, then it’s time to get more serious and move on to the next step.
Report The Drone To Your Local Flight Standards District Office
If you’re aware of the FAA’s drone laws and you’ve determined that the drone pilot is breaking them then it’s time to report the drone to your local flight standards district office.
Their contact details will depend on where you live, however, it should be fairly easy to find through this FAA search by state page, or you could also do a quick google search.
You’ll need to know the details of the pilot so if you don’t know who owns the drone, but you know where they live then you’ll probably want to move on to the next step.
Call The Police
So you’ve asked the drone owner multiple times to stop flying the drone over your property, and they’re still ignoring your plea by being a nuisance or flying recklessly, then it’s finally time to call the cops on them.
According to the FAA, how people choose to use drones is not regulated by them, it becomes a local law enforcement problem. That being said the next step is to call the police on the drone owner. They will more than likely just get a slap on the wrist for the offense, however, this might be enough to scare them away from your property for good.
Final Thoughts
While some people might just be bored and have no real reasons to report a drone, I do also believe that there are some very valid reasons for this, and if you went through the time and effort to read through this entire article, then I’m sure your reasons are valid too.
So if a drone is being a nuisance or if the pilot is flying recklessly, and if they’ve decided to ignore all your pleas then go ahead and report them. Just make sure you don’t take the law into your own hands, otherwise, you’ll be the one under the spotlight.