united-kingdom england-and-wales police
Is it required to provide one&#39;s name and date of birth when reporting a crime to the police?
<p>Naturally when the police speak with one they like to ask for one's name and date of birth. And one would probably expect the police reporting procedures as a matter of course to require date of birth and name as a prerequisite of accepting the crime report for example the metropolitan polices online crime reporting portal may well be programmed like this.</p>
<p>But what is the legal situation? Are they required to accept and look into a crime complaint/report made by a member of the public who declines to identify themselves?</p>

<h2>Police are not <em>required</em> to “look into” any report</h2>
<p>What the police choose to investigate is solely at their discretion irrespective of the number or quality of reports on the matter.</p>
<h2>You do not have to give your name</h2>
<p>You can report anonymously if you like. It does make investigation more difficult because the police cannot follow up for further information and may influence their decision on whether to investigate.</p>
