Do you have to give your name to the police in England and Wales?

There is no general legal obligation to provide your name to police in England and Wales. However, specific statutory powers require you to identify yourself in particular circumstances: road traffic offences, stop and search under certain powers, and some public order situations. Refusing when legally required is a criminal offence.

The law

Road Traffic Act 1988, Section 172. Requires drivers to give their name and address when required in connection with alleged road traffic offences. Failure is a criminal offence.
Police Reform Act 2002, Section 50. Constables and PCSOs may require a name and address from a person believed to have acted in an anti-social manner. Failure without reasonable excuse is an offence.
Road Traffic Act 1988, Section 170. Drivers involved in accidents involving injury must stop and provide their details to persons having reasonable grounds to require them.

The penalty

Offence: Failure to give name and address to a constable (Police Reform Act 2002, s.50)
Maximum: Level 3 fine (£1,000)
Typical range: Fixed penalty notice or fine; rarely prosecuted unless part of a wider pattern of anti-social behaviour

What to do

If stopped by police without being arrested, you are not generally required to give your name: politely ask the officer under what power they are requesting your details.
If you were driving a vehicle involved in a road traffic incident or alleged offence, you must give your name and address when asked.
If a constable or PCSO alleges anti-social behaviour, you are legally required to give your name and address under s.50 Police Reform Act 2002.
Once arrested and at a police station, give your name, address, and date of birth: refusal only extends your detention.
Keep a note of the interaction: time, location, officer name and badge number, and reason given for the stop.

In detail

England and Wales does not have a general "stop and identify" law of the kind found in some other jurisdictions. There is no blanket requirement to carry identity documents or to tell police who you are when asked. However, this general principle is subject to a number of important statutory exceptions.

The general position

At common law, a person who is stopped but not arrested is not required to give their name or address to a police officer unless a specific statutory power applies. Simply being stopped for questioning in the street does not obligate you to identify yourself. Police can ask for your name, but you are not legally required to answer.

Statutory exceptions: when you must give your name

Several statutes require a person to give their name and address to police in specific circumstances:

Road traffic offences (s.172 Road Traffic Act 1988): If you are the driver of a vehicle alleged to have been involved in an accident, or to have been driven in a manner amounting to a motoring offence, you must give your name and address if required to do so. This also applies to the keeper of a vehicle. Failure to give your name and address in this context is a criminal offence under s.172.

Anti-social behaviour (s.50 Police Reform Act 2002): A community support officer (PCSO) can require a person to give their name and address if they have reasonable grounds to believe the person has been acting in an anti-social manner. A constable has the same power. Failing to comply without reasonable excuse is a criminal offence punishable by a fixed penalty.

Witness to road accidents (s.170 Road Traffic Act 1988): The driver of any vehicle involved in an accident involving injury must stop and, if required by any person having reasonable grounds for doing so, give their name and address and particulars of the vehicle.

After arrest

Once you have been arrested, you will be required to give your details at the police station. Under the PACE custody procedure, refusing to give your name, address, and date of birth is noted on the custody record and may lead to longer detention while identity is verified.

In practice

While you may not be legally required to give your name in every interaction, refusing to cooperate with police can escalate an encounter unnecessarily. Officers may also seek to establish your identity through other means (searching for ID, checking databases). If you are stopped and searched under s.1 PACE 1984, you are not required to give your name, but the officer may ask and you may choose to provide it.

Scotland differs

In Scotland, s.13 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 gives police a right to require a person they suspect has committed or is about to commit an offence to give their name and address. Failure to comply is a criminal offence in Scotland. This power does not apply in England and Wales.