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This site is a beta, which means it's a work in progress and we'll be adding more to it over the next few weeks. Your feedback helps us make things better, so please let us know what you think.
We will be in touch as soon as possible to tell you what we are doing.
How quickly we will be in touch depends on lots of things, but we aim to get back to you within 6 hours.
We will ask any extra questions we need to, and will tell you what will happen next.
Exactly what we will do depends on the level of risk and on the local police force. But for example at the start of an investigation we might:
If we do not think the case is a missing person investigation, we will:
If an investigation crosses boundaries between police forces (for example if someone goes missing in one area but is potentially seen in another) police forces will work together.
The force for the place the person is missing from usually has overall responsibility, but this can change if most of the investigation is happening in a different area.
After you’ve reported a missing person, our team will decide if the case is:
We take into account lots of factors including age and health when deciding risk. The risk level will help us decide what to do next. You can ask about and should be told the risk level.
The risk level is not fixed and can be reassessed during the investigation when there is new information or circumstances change.
If you remember some more details after you have reported someone missing, you can tell us something you have remembered online.
While you wait to hear from us, there are things you can do to help look for a missing person.
Most missing people are found or return in the first few days.
If someone is missing for longer than a few days, the police investigation will change.
Find out what happens when someone has been missing for more than a few days.
The charity Missing People can support you and help you cope when someone has gone missing.
LBT Global (formerly The Lucie Blackman Trust) helps people when someone has gone missing abroad.
Report a missing person online
If you’re still concerned for someone's welfare you can find out how we or other organisations can help.