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Search and Surveillance Act 2012

Police powers - Warrantless powers of entry in urgent circumstances

14: Warrantless entry to prevent offence or respond to risk to life or safety

You could also call this:

"Police can enter without permission to stop something bad happening or to keep people safe."

If you are a police officer, you can enter a place or vehicle without a warrant if you think something bad is happening or might happen. You need to have good reasons to think this, such as someone might get hurt or property might get damaged. You can then take action to stop the bad thing from happening or to keep people safe.

You can do this if you think a crime is being committed, or is about to be committed, and it could hurt someone or damage property. You can also do this if someone's life or safety is at risk and they need help right away.

As a police officer, you must only take action that you think is necessary to prevent the bad thing from happening or to keep people safe.

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This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM2136647.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Police and safetyRights and equality > Privacy
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13: Property taken from people locked up in Police custody, or

"What happens to your belongings when you're in Police custody"

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15: Entry without warrant to find and avoid loss of evidential material relating to certain offences, or

"Police can search a place without permission if they think a serious crime is happening and evidence will be lost."

Part 2Police powers
Warrantless powers of entry in urgent circumstances

14Warrantless entry to prevent offence or respond to risk to life or safety

  1. A constable who has reasonable grounds to suspect that any 1 or more of the circumstances in subsection (2) exist in relation to a place or vehicle may—

  2. enter the place or vehicle without a warrant; and
    1. take any action that he or she has reasonable grounds to believe is necessary to prevent the offending from being committed or continuing, or to avert the emergency.

      1. The circumstances are as follows:

      2. an offence is being committed, or is about to be committed, that would be likely to cause injury to any person, or serious damage to, or serious loss of, any property:
        1. there is risk to the life or safety of any person that requires an emergency response.