If you complain about Metropolitan Police Service and ask for a review, the reviewing body found the force's original outcome was not reasonable and proportionate in 36.0% of 971 completed reviews in 2024/25, the 3rd highest of 43 forces and 11.5 points above the national figure of 24.5%. Metropolitan Police Service recorded 396,995 stop and searches between 2023-07 to 2026-07, and 67.4% ended in no further action.
Share a fact about Metropolitan Police Service
The most common stated reason Metropolitan Police Service gave for a stop and search was "Controlled drugs", with 228,128 searches, 58.5% of those with a reason recorded.
Source: data.police.uk, 2023-07 to 2026-07. Figures as published; see the tables on this page for the full denominators.
Complaints about Metropolitan Police Service
| Complaint cases logged | 12,039 |
|---|---|
| Employees | 48,760 |
| Cases per 1,000 employees | 246.9 (38th of 44) |
| Review applications to the local policing body | 397 |
| Review applications to the IOPC | 646 |
Where reviews found the outcome was not reasonable and proportionate
| Route | Reviews completed | Outcome overturned | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local policing body, complaint not investigated | 426 | 187 | 43.9% |
| IOPC, complaint not investigated | 271 | 71 | 26.2% |
| IOPC, complaint investigated | 246 | 83 | 33.7% |
Stop and search by Metropolitan Police Service
| Searches recorded | 396,995 |
|---|---|
| Period | 2023-07 to 2026-07 |
| Months of data | 36 of 36 |
| Ended in no further action | 67.4% |
| More than outer clothing removed | 5,169 |
What Metropolitan Police Service searched people for
| Stated object of search | Searches |
|---|---|
| Controlled drugs | 228,128 |
| Stolen goods | 81,288 |
| Offensive weapons | 59,289 |
| Evidence of offences under the Act | 15,583 |
| Anything to threaten or harm anyone | 5,748 |
Who Metropolitan Police Service searched
| Officer-defined ethnicity | Searches | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Black | 157,618 | 42.0% |
| White | 144,979 | 38.7% |
| Asian | 56,707 | 15.1% |
| Other | 15,685 | 4.2% |
Calculated over the 374,989 searches where an officer recorded an ethnicity, which is 94.5% of all searches by this force.
Compared with who lives in the Metropolitan Police Service area
| Ethnic group | Share of searches | Share of residents | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 41.8% | 13.5% | 3.1x |
| White | 38.7% | 53.7% | 0.7x |
| Other | 4.4% | 6.3% | 0.7x |
| Asian | 15.0% | 20.7% | 0.7x |
Use of force by Metropolitan Police Service
| Year | Use of force reports | Relative volume |
|---|---|---|
| 2020/21 | 172,451 | |
| 2021/22 | 144,166 | |
| 2022/23 | 128,111 | |
| 2023/24 | 111,248 | |
| 2024/25 | 105,889 |
Recorded use of force by Metropolitan Police Service has fallen 38.6% since 2020/21. Nationally the total rose 39.4% over the same period, so this force is moving against the national trend.
Taser use
| Total recorded Taser uses | 6,751 |
|---|---|
| Of which discharged | 442 |
| Share actually discharged | 6.5% |
Most recorded Taser use is drawing, aiming or red-dotting rather than firing. The share actually discharged is the figure worth knowing.
Complaining to Metropolitan Police Service
Complaints go to the force first. Use its own official channel so the complaint is recorded properly and you get written confirmation.
- Metropolitan Police Service official website
- Telephone: 101
What you can do about it
Complaining to a force and bringing a claim against it are different processes with different outcomes. Reviews overturn the force's own finding in roughly a quarter of cases nationally, which makes the review stage worth understanding before you use it.
Metropolitan Police Service in the news
The five most recent reports mentioning this force, collected automatically. Headlines and links belong to the publishers named. We do not edit, summarise or endorse them, and inclusion here does not imply any finding against anyone.
- ICO takes action against Metropolitan Police Service over information governance failures
- Met Police launch inclusive recruitment campaign
- Medal awarded to police officer who led Jack the Ripper investigation up for auction
- Arrest made after alleged attempted burglary at Covent Garden Apple Store
- Easy Japanese news in translation: Matsuko Deluxe serves as one-day police chief in Tokyo
- Independent Office for Police Conduct, police complaints statistics for England and Wales, 2024/25.
- data.police.uk stop and search API, 2023-07 to 2026-07. Accessed 2026-09-12.
- Home Office police use of force statistics, England and Wales, 2024/25.
Data last refreshed , covering 2023-07 to 2026-07. Every figure on this page is recomputed from the source datasets, not edited by hand. Found something wrong? Tell us.