If you feel the police have treated you unfairly, you can make a formal complaint about the officers involved. You can also complain to the police if you have been assaulted and they haven’t taken any action on your case.

A complaint about the NSW Police Force or its employees can be made to the Commissioner of Police or the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC).

To lodge a formal complaint with the Commissioner of Police you must do so in writing.

  • You must lodge your complaint onlineOR complete the complaint form 

  • To lodge a formal complaint with the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC) visit their website. The Law Enforcement Conduct Commission is an independent statutory body responsible for investigating complaints against the police. It has its own independent investigators for these cases. Some less serious complaints will be referred to the police for investigation but, these will be monitored by the Commission's own staff.

  • In most circumstances complaints received by the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission will be referred to the NSW Police Force to investigate (subject to the oversight of the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission).

Assistance - If you need help you can contact the Customer Assistance Unit on 1800 622 571 to obtain assistance on how to lodge a complaint.

What information should you provide?

When making a complaint it's important to provide as much detail as possible to assist police to respond appropriately to your complaint. The information you should try to include is:

  • your name and contact details;

  • a detailed description of the matter being reported;

  • date, time and location of the incident;

  • the names of people involved, or who could otherwise assist police to resolve your complaint;

  • the names (if known) of the NSW police officers involved;

  • details of any documents, records, witnesses etc, that may assist in the resolution of your complaint;

  • what you expect the NSW Police Force to do about your concern; and

  • any other information you consider relevant.

What to expect from the Police

Once you have lodged a written complaint you can expect the NSW Police Force to:

  • protect your confidentiality

  • advise you of the receipt of your complaint and how police intend to manage it

  • keep you advised of the complaint's progress

  • consult with you on the action the police intend to take as a result of the complaint, if practicable

  • advise you of the action taken as a result of the complaint

  • obtain advice from you on whether you are satisfied with the action taken in response to your complaint.