How to report non-urgent crime
What to do if you are the victim of a non-urgent crime which has
occurred in the City of London
In an emergency dial 999, mobiles 112
What is a non-emergency crime?
Lost or stolen?
Reporting non-urgent crime:
Location of crime
Cheque / credit card fraud
Mobile phone theft
Theft of laptop computer
Vehicle crime
Third party reports
Reporting hate crime
Useful information and anonymous reporting
Criminal Justice System
What is a non-emergency crime?
A crime that does not require the immediate attendance of police
officers.
Examples of such incidents are:
- Theft of a mobile phone, laptop computer, etc.
- Credit card fraud.
- Vehicle crime.
Lost or stolen?
It is not always clear whether missing property has been lost or
stolen.
If you believe that it is more likely than not that the property
has been stolen, a crime will be recorded.
If you believe, on balance of probability, the item is more likely
to have been lost, a lost property report will be recorded.
It is an offence to knowingly provide false information to the
police.
City of London Police will prosecute where a fraudulent report
of crime has been made.
Methods of reporting non-emergency crime:
By telephone
There is a dedicated,
free telephone line available in the front office area of each
police premises, which connects directly to the Force call and
crime input bureau.
Or, call 020 7601 2222 from your office or home.
Text phone
The City of London Police operates a textphone service to improve
communication with customers with hearing and speech
impairments.
The text phone, monitored twenty-four hours a day by police
personnel, enables textphone users to contact police at any time.
The user simply calls the dedicated number and then has a typed
conversation with the police operator.
The number for the City of London Police text phone service is
020 7601 2906.
In person
Go to the front offices of Bishopsgate or Snow Hill police
stations, open twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.
Or Wood Street police building, open 0730 - 1930 hours, Monday
to Friday.
Hate crime
To report an incident where you or someone else has been targeted
because of race, religion, sexuality, gender identity or
disability, you can use the True Vision
www.report-it.org.uk web
site.
Report hate crime online
>>
Illegal internet content
To report a web site containing any of the following content, you
can visit the Internet Watch Foundation web site at
www.iwf.org.uk.
- Child abuse images originating anywhere in the world
- Criminally racist content hosted in the UK
- Criminally obscene content hosted in the UK
You can read more about the Internet Watch Foundation in our
section on illegal internet content.
Report illegal internet content
>>
Remember: for an emergency or crime in progress always call 999,
mobiles 112.
Location of crime
When reporting a crime, please ensure that you are able to provide
full address details, as a crime is recorded by the force in whose
jurisdiction the offence took place.
City of London Police staff will assist, take reports of crimes
that occur outside our jurisdiction.
In these circumstances, the details will be transferred to the
appropriate force. That force will contact you with their crime
number.
Cheque / credit card fraud
The victim of a deception is the bank or shop from which cash or
goods were fraudulently obtained.
Therefore, if you are reporting misuse of your credit card
details, this is likely to be treated as a 'third party
report'.
You may be asked to provide:
- A schedule of misuse of your account, in order that the victims
may be contacted.
- Account number and bank sort code as appropriate.
- If your card has been stolen, you are the victim of a theft and
a crime of theft will also be recorded.
Mobile phone theft
You should immediately notify your service provider and request
that a block is placed on the phone. You should also obtain serial
numbers, SIM card number, or IMEI numbers in order to assist the
police investigation.
Police will require your mobile telephone number and details of
recent calls. Your mobile network provider may be asked to provide
details of telephone usage prior to and after the theft, including
the location from where calls were made.
Theft of laptop computer
Please provide police with the make and serial number of the stolen
laptop.
Vehicle crime
Please ensure you have the make and registration of the vehicle
concerned. It is also helpful if you have the vehicle's log
book.
Third party reports
If you are not the victim of the crime, or acting directly on
behalf of the victim, details of your report will be recorded as an
unconfirmed incident.
The victim of the crime is regarded as the owner of property
stolen or damaged, the person towards whom abuse or violence is
directed, or in the case of fraud, the individual or organisation
directly deceived.
Police will then take reasonable steps to trace the victim and
confirm the crime.
Reporting hate crime
Hate crimes are directed against people because of some aspect of
who they are, most typically because they are from an ethnic
minority or visible religious minority, or because of their
sexuality.
Hate crime covers a wide range of behaviour, for example verbal
abuse, racist or homophobic graffiti or physical assault. A crime
can be classed as a hate crime if the victim or witness see it as
being so.
If you are the victim of what you think is a hate crime, it is not
your fault. You have the right to live your life free from abuse
and violence, whoever you are. You do not have to live with hate
crime.
Police are trained to deal with hate crime with sensitivity and
tact. They will not treat you differently because you are from an
ethnic or religious minority, or because of your sexuality.
Contact our hate crime unit: 0207 601 2940
Fax number 0207 601 2942 and
Email:
domesticviolence@city-of-london.police.uk
Useful information and anonymous
reporting
If you have any information that may be of use to the police or a
particular investigation, no matter how small, please contact the
City of London Police directly, or call Crimestoppers anonymously
on 0800 555 111.
Criminal Justice System
The City of London Police is a member of the broader Criminal
Justice System. If you are a witness or a victim of crime within
the City of London, it is likely that you will have some contact
within this unit. For further information on the Criminal Justice
System, please visit www.cjsonline.gov.uk
11
March 2008