Can you believe it?

I've seen this done before and assumed the cord was getting pulled accidentally or trailing on the floor. Commonsense if often in short supply!

No Galen YANBU.

Perhaps you should report them to the H&SE - it is ridiculous to install safety features and then render them unusable.
The court is probably in breach of some H&S regulation requiring buildings used by the public to have proper facilities for people with disabilities and that includes being able to summon help if needed.

This seems to be a common reaction to problems: don't solve them just hide them!

I agree. I've left it in the hands of our capable clerk.
We're in the magistrates court as our court is being modernised.
This means taking out the functional ramp and installing a lift that I suspect will require a member of our staff to come down 3 floors to work it!

That reminds me of many years ago when my husband was on the road visiting clients. He checked into his hotel and was desperate for the toilet. He rushed into his room straight into the bathroom and pulled what he thought was the light cord and then switched the real light on. Just as he had finished doing what comes naturally there was a hammering on the bedroom door and someone from the hotel asking if he was ok - yes - he'd pulled the emergency cord! That was bad enough but the guy insisted in going into the bathroom to check the cord - he soon rushed out again very red faced and said everything was fine. I don't think hubby visited that hotel again

I was on a train recently and sitting near loo, which was one of those 'swooshy' ones. Nearly everyone who went to use it pushed the alarm button instead, and I spent the entire ( 8 hr ) journey watching the train staff rushing up to see what was wrong. ( Easily Amused! )

You often see fire sensors covered because they are too sensitive and keep going off, e.g. in a block of flats I often visit. They do it because the alarm automatically goes off in the fire station as well. Crazy.

The smoke alarm on my landing goes off if I have a shower with the door open - it can't distinguish between steam and smoke. And the security light at the back of my house is activated by steam from my boiler, so until I made the connection I was always creeping to the window to see what was going on!

Another thing about public toilets - would it be too much trouble to put a hook on the back of the door and then my bag or coat do not end up on the floor?

Many the time I've almost pulled the alarm cord in public toilets, hospital toilets and the dentist's toilet.

I wish they would bring back paper towels don't like the hand dryers and a friend said they harbour germs.

janeainsworth is right Galen, you aren't being unreasonable and this is indeed a Health n Safety issue.

The point made by a number of people about the fact it's so easy to press the panic button, rather than lock the door or whatever in train toilets is a good one.

rubylady - I wouldn't be in a rush to hang my bag on a hook on the toilet door. In my working life, I was well acquainted with a local drug user/dealer who in desperation (frequent desperation) would go into the Ladies and put his hand over the doors, lifting numerous handbags before running off. He wasn't always caught or it wouldn't have been such a successful heist.

Iam, I've also heard of desperate thieves entering the Ladies and hooking handbags placed on the floor of the cubicles through the gap at the bottom of the door!

Well perhaps the handbag hook should be on the wall between the cubicles - that might be the answer!