Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, section 16

Execution of warrants

Part II Powers of Entry, Search and Seizure

(1)A warrant to enter and search premises may be executed by any constable.

(2)Such a warrant may authorise persons to accompany any constable who is executing it.

[F59 (2A)A person so authorised has the same powers as the constable whom he accompanies in respect of—

(a)the execution of the warrant, and

(b)the seizure of anything to which the warrant relates.

(2B)But he may exercise those powers only in the company, and under the supervision, of a constable.F59]

(3)Entry and search under a warrant must be within [F60three monthsF60] from the date of its issue.

[F61 (3A)If the warrant is an all premises warrant, no premises which are not specified in it may be entered or searched unless a police officer of at least the rank of inspector has in writing authorised them to be entered.F61]

[F62 (3B)No premises may be entered or searched for the second or any subsequent time under a warrant which authorises multiple entries unless a police officer of at least the rank of inspector has in writing authorised that entry to those premises.F62]

(4)Entry and search under a warrant must be at a reasonable hour unless it appears to the constable executing it that the purpose of a search may be frustrated on an entry at a reasonable hour.

(5)Where the occupier of premises which are to be entered and searched is present at the time when a constable seeks to execute a warrant to enter and search them, the constable—

(a)shall identify himself to the occupier and, if not in uniform, shall produce to him documentary evidence that he is a constable;

(b)shall produce the warrant to him; and

(c)shall supply him with a copy of it.

(6)Where—

(a)the occupier of such premises is not present at the time when a constable seeks to execute such a warrant; but

(b)some other person who appears to the constable to be in charge of the premises is present,

subsection (5) above shall have effect as if any reference to the occupier were a reference to that other person.

(7)If there is no person who appears to the constable to be in charge of the premises, he shall leave a copy of the warrant in a prominent place on the premises.

(8)A search under a warrant may only be a search to the extent required for the purpose for which the warrant was issued.

(9)A constable executing a warrant shall make an endorsement on it stating—

(a)whether the articles or persons sought were found; and

(b)whether any articles were seized, other than articles which were sought

[F63 and, unless the warrant is a F64. . . warrant specifying one set of premises only, he shall do so separately in respect of each set of premises entered and searched, which he shall in each case state in the endorsement.F63]

[F65 (10)A warrant shall be returned to the appropriate person mentioned in subsection (10A) below—

(a)when it has been executed; or

(b)in the case of a specific premises warrant which has not been executed, or an all premises warrant, or any warrant authorising multiple entries, upon the expiry of the period of three months referred to in subsection (3) above or sooner.

(10A)The appropriate person is—

(a)if the warrant was issued by a justice of the peace, the designated officer for the local justice area in which the justice was acting when he issued the warrant;

(b)if it was issued by a judge, the appropriate officer of the court from which he issued it.F65]

(11)A warrant which is returned under subsection (10) above shall be retained for 12 months from its return—

(a)by the [F66designated officer for the local justice areaF66] , if it was returned under paragraph (i) of that subsection; and

(b)by the appropriate officer, if it was returned under paragraph (ii).

(12)If during the period for which a warrant is to be retained the occupier of [F67premisesF67] to which it relates asks to inspect it, he shall be allowed to do so.

Definitions used in section 16 1

premises

“premises” has the meaning assigned to it by section 23 above;

Defined in s.118(1) · see it in the full Act

“premises” includes any place and, in particular, includes—

(a)

any vehicle, vessel, aircraft or hovercraft;

(b)

any offshore installation;

(ba)

any renewable energy installation;

(c)

any tent or movable structure; . . .

Defined in s.23 · see it in the full Act

Cases considering section 16 37

Ward (Respondent) v. Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis and others (Appellants)

[2005] UKHL 32 · 5 May 2005Interprets

Baroness Hale inclined to the view that this section applies to section 135 warrants and supplies safeguards concerning their execution, but found it unnecessary to decide the point (see paras [30]–[32]).

Pearce & Anor, R (on the application of) v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis & Anor

[2013] EWCA Civ 866 · 18 July 2013

The Court applied the requirement that a warrant search extend only as far as required for its authorised purpose. Royal Wedding security considerations affected timing but did not alter that purpose where officers searched for the specified goods within the warrants’ scope (see paras [28]-[32]; [38]).

Fisher & Anoe v The Cumbria Constabulary

[1997] EWCA Civ 2232 · 29 July 1997

Applies: For this appeal, failure to leave a copy of the warrant in a prominent place was accepted as making the entry and search unlawful and as producing a single trespass. The court reserved whether an inadvertent failure after a lawful search invalidates the search ab initio or affects admissibility of evidence (see unnumbered judgment, passages beginning ‘It is accepted that that provision was not observed’ and ‘Before leaving this part of this appeal’).

17 more judgments, and what each says about section 16, are in the case-law panel in the full Act.

Amendments and notes

36 notes from legislation.gov.uk

Amendments

  1. F59S. 16(2A)(2B) inserted (20.1.2004) by Criminal Justice Act 2003 (c. 44), ss. 2, 336; S.I. 2004/81, art. 2(1)(2)(a)
  2. F60Words in s. 16(3) substituted (1.1.2006) by Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (c. 15), ss. 114(8)(a), 178; S.I. 2005/3495, art. 2(1)(n)
  3. F61S. 16(3A) inserted (1.1.2006) by Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (c. 15), ss. 113(9)(a), 178; S.I. 2005/3495, art. 2(1)(n)
  4. F62S. 16(3B) inserted (1.1.2006) by Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (c. 15), ss. 114(8)(b), 178; S.I. 2005/3495, art. 2(1)(n)
  5. F63Words in s. 16(9) added (1.1.2006) by Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (c. 15), ss. 113(9)(b), 178; S.I. 2005/3495, art. 2(1)(n)
  6. F64Words in s. 16(9) omitted (1.1.2006) by virtue of The Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (Amendment) Order 2005 (S.I. 2005/3496), art. 8
  7. F65S. 16(10)(10A) substituted for s. 16(10) (1.1.2006) by Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (c. 15), ss. 114(8)(c), 178; S.I. 2005/3495, art. 2(1)(n)
  8. F66Words in s. 16(11) substituted (1.4.2005) by Courts Act 2003 (c. 39), ss. 109(1), 110, Sch. 8 para. 281(3); S.I. 2005/910, art. 3(y)
  9. F67Words in s. 16(12) substituted (1.1.2006) by Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (c. 15), ss. 113(9)(c), 178; S.I. 2005/3495, art. 2(1)(n)

Modifications

  1. C71Ss. 15, 16 applied (29.4.2021 for specified purposes, 29.6.2021 in so far as not already in force) by Air Traffic Management and Unmanned Aircraft Act 2021 (c. 12), s. 21(1)(a), Sch. 8 para. 3(4); S.I. 2021/748, reg. 2(k)
  2. C86Ss. 8, 9, 15, 16, 17(1)(b) (2) (4), 18-20, 21, 22(1)-(4), 28, 29, 30(1)-(4)(a) (5)-(11), 31, 32(1)-(9), 34(1)-(5), 35, 36, 37, 39, 40-44, 50, 51(d), 52, 54, 55, 64(1)-(4)(5)(6), Sch. 1 applied with modifications by S.I. 1985/1800, arts. 3-11, Schs. 1, 2
  3. C87S. 16 applied (3.9.2001) by 2000 c. 8, s. 176(6); S.I. 2001/2632, art. 2, Sch. 1 Pt. 2
  4. C88S. 16: power to apply (with modifications) conferred (24.2.2003) by Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (c. 29), ss. 355(1)(2)(3)(b), 458; S.I. 2003/120, art. 2, Sch. (subject to transitional provisions and savings in arts. 3-7 (as amended by S.I. 2003/333, art. 14 which in turn is amended by S.I. 2003/531, arts. 3, 4))
  5. C89S. 16 modified (2.12.2002) by Police Reform Act 2002 (c. 30), s. 38, Sch. 4 Pt. 2 para. 16(e); S.I. 2002/2750, art. 2(a)(ii)(d)
  6. C90S. 16 applied (with modifications) (24.2.2003) by The Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (Application of Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and Police and Criminal Evidence (Northern Ireland) Order 1989) Order 2003 (S.I. 2003/174), arts. 3, 10, Sch. 1
  7. C91S. 16 applied (31.12.2009) by Banking Act 2009 (c. 1), ss. 194(7), 263(1) (with ss. 206, 247); S.I. 2009/3000, art. 4, Sch. para. 2
  8. C92S. 16 applied (7.6.2010) by The Credit Rating Agencies Regulations 2010 (S.I. 2010/906), reg. 18(5)
  9. C93S. 16 applied by S.I. 2010/906, reg. 33(7) (as inserted (1.7.2011) by The Credit Rating Agencies (Amendment) Regulations 2011 (S.I. 2011/1435), regs. 1, 4(e) (with reg. 5))
  10. C94S. 16 applied (with modifications) (25.6.2013) by The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (Application to immigration officers and designated customs officials in England and Wales) Order 2013 (S.I. 2013/1542), arts. 1, 12(2)-(4), Sch. 2 (with arts. 13-31)
  11. C95S. 16 applied (with modifications) (25.6.2013) by The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (Application to immigration officers and designated customs officials in England and Wales) Order 2013 (S.I. 2013/1542), arts. 1, 3(2)-(4), Sch. 1 (with arts. 4-11)
  12. C96S. 16 applied (with modifications) (1.6.2015) by The Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (Application of Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984) Order 2015 (S.I. 2015/759), arts. 1(1), 3 (as amended (31.1.2018 for specified purposes, 16.4.2018 in so far as not already in force) by S.I. 2017/1222, arts. 1(2)(3), 2(3) and (26.4.2024) by S.I. 2024/426, arts. 1(2), 2(3))
  13. C97S. 16 applied (with modifications) (4.11.2015) by The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (Application to Revenue and Customs) Order 2015 (S.I. 2015/1783), arts. 1, 3(1), Sch. 1 (with arts. 3(2)(3), 4-19, Sch. 2)
  14. C98S. 16 applied (with modifications) (30.4.2017) by The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (Application to Labour Abuse Prevention Officers) Regulations 2017 (S.I. 2017/520), regs. 1, 2, 3(g), Sch.
  15. C99S. 16 applied (30.11.2017) by The Conservation of Offshore Marine Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (S.I. 2017/1013), regs. 1, 60(6) (with regs. 3, 4(2))
  16. C100S. 16 applied (with modifications) (1.4.2018) by The Welsh Revenue Authority (Powers to Investigate Criminal Offences) Regulations 2018 (S.I. 2018/400), regs. 1(2), 3(1)(3), Sch. (with regs. 4-8)
  17. C101S. 16 applied (29.8.2023) by 2009 c. 1, s. 206P(7)-(9) (as inserted by Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 (c. 29), s. 86(2)(d), Sch. 9 para. 1)
  18. C102S. 16 applied (with modifications) (1.5.2025) by The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (Application to Food Crime Officers) Regulations 2025 (S.I. 2025/300), regs. 1(1), 2-6
  19. C103S. 16 applied (with modifications) (1.4.2026) by Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Act 2025 (c. 28), ss. 7, 109(1), Sch. 1 (with ss. 72, 105); S.I. 2026/371, reg. 2(a)
  20. C104S. 16 applied (with modifications) (7.4.2026) by The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (Application to Enforcement Officers) Regulations 2026 (S.I. 2026/303), regs. 1(1), 3, 4(g), Sch. paras. 1-10, 14
  21. C105S. 16(3)-(12) applied by 2000 c. 8, s. 131FB(7) (as inserted (1.11.2012) by The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Short Selling) Regulations 2012 (S.I. 2012/2554), regs. 1(1), 2(5))
  22. C106S. 16(3)-(12) applied (1.4.2013) by The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Over the Counter Derivatives, Central Counterparties and Trade Repositories) Regulations 2013 (S.I. 2013/504), regs. 1(2), 17(10) (with regs. 52-58)
  23. C107S. 16(3)-(12) applied (1.3.2014) by Financial Services (Banking Reform) Act 2013 (c. 33), ss. 88(9), 148(5); S.I. 2014/377, art. 2(1)(a), Sch. Pt. 1
  24. C108S. 16(3)-(12) applied by 2009 c. 1, s. 83ZL(9) (as inserted (1.1.2015) by The Bank Recovery and Resolution Order 2014 (S.I. 2014/3329), arts. 1(2), 97)
  25. C109S. 16(3)-(12) applied by 2000 c. 8, s. 122D(7) (as inserted (3.7.2016) by The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Market Abuse) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 2016/680), regs. 1, 9(4))
  26. C110S. 16(3)-(12) applied (26.6.2017) by The Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 (S.I. 2017/692), regs. 1(2), 70(11) (with regs. 8, 15)
  27. C111S. 16(3)-(12) applied (31.12.2023) by Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 (c. 29), s. 86(3), Sch. 11 para. 130(9); S.I. 2023/1382, reg. 8(b)