Recordable offence explained

Recordable offence should not be confused with notifiable offence.

A recordable offence is any offence in England and Wales where the police must keep records of convictions and offenders on the Police National Computer.^[1]

Legislation

The power for police to keep such records is contained in the National Police Records (Recordable Offences) Regulations 2000. This states that a 'crime recordable offence' is an offence which must be recorded as a conviction on the PNC.

Recordable offences include any offence punishable by imprisonment, plus at least 50 non-imprisonable offences,^[2] such as:

• nuisance communications (phone calls, letters)
• tampering with motor vehicles
• firearms, air weapons, knives
• football offences
• causing harm or danger to children
• drunkenness
• poaching
• failing to provide a specimen of breath, and
• taking a pedal cycle without owner's consent

A full, lengthy, list of recordable offences is available, provided by ACPO as an Appendix to their Retention Guidelines for Nominal Records on the Police National Computer.^[3]

Further police powers

Where a person has been arrested for a recordable offence, police may fingerprint and take non-intimate DNA samples from suspects without authorisation from senior ranks.^[4]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Recordable offence - Law wiki, the wiki for law research . Thaddeus . Kobylarz . Lawiki.org . 25 August 2020 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120808201736/https://lawiki.org/lawwiki/Recordable_offence . 8 August 2012.
2. Web site: The National Police Records (Recordable Offences) Regulations 2000 . legislaton.gov.uk . 28 December 2023.
3. Web site: Retention Guidelines for Nominal Records on the Police National Computer . July 27, 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20101214080356/http://www.acpo.police.uk/asp/policies/Data/Retention%20of%20Records06.pdf . December 14, 2010.
4. Web site: Types of offences . Andrew . Gray . Trident Ploughshares legal support (England & Wales) . 6 September 2020 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080828180332/http://www.andrewgray.uklinux.net/legalsupport/procedures30.html . 28 August 2008.