Overview

• HMICFRS reports overall compliance rose from 80.5% in 2014 to 94.8% in the year to 31 March 2025, yet more than 285,000 offences were missed.
• Only 51.9% of anti-social behaviour targeting individuals or groups was recorded, a level the watchdog calls unacceptably low.
• On timeliness, just 78% of crimes were logged within 24 hours on average; five forces managed under 40%, and one logged only 2.6%, typically after more than a week.
• Inspectors found correct procedures for unconfirmed rape reports in fewer than 70% of sampled cases and urged better recording of harassment, stalking and coercive control, which account for 37.9% of unrecorded violent crime.
• Performance varies by force and offence type, with violent crime recording averaging 93.6% and sexual offences 95.9% between 2023 and 2025, while 2.3% of incidents were over-recorded.