How long does a police complaint take?

Last updated 2026-08-29 · Published by PoliceComplaint.com

There is no single statutory deadline for finishing a complaint. What the IOPC does publish is how long forces take at each stage, and the variation between forces is wide.

The stages that are measured

The published statistics record how long a force takes to log a complaint after receiving it, how long to make initial contact with the complainant, and how long to finalise the case. Each is reported per force.

Why the variation matters more than the average

An average across all forces hides the thing you actually want to know, which is how your force performs. The same is true of complaint volumes: a force logging a lot of complaints may simply be recording them properly, which is why the more useful measure is what happens when its decisions are challenged.

Find your force to see its figures, or look it up by postcode.

While you are waiting

Keep your own record: the date you complained, any reference number, and the name of the person handling it. If you have heard nothing, ask in writing and keep the reply.

Waiting for a complaint does not pause the deadlines for a civil claim. Those run separately and depend on the type of claim, so if you think you may have one it is worth finding out where you stand rather than waiting for the complaint to conclude. The three routes are set out here.