Swedish police are usually trustworthy, but they are underfunded and love to close investigations.

I have called the emergency number three times in my life and the non emergency number a few times.

I called the emergency number once for a fire in a bin during a dry summer, they were not really interested.

The second time was this summer, I hit an animal when driving at night during the late summer, since I couldn’t see what animal it was and some animal are required to be reported, I did so.

The third time was when I heard a sharp bang behind me and saw a light flash reflected off of a bridge I was driving passed, I called and reported a possible gunshot.

I did call the non emergency number to report an open door at a school that was closed for the day.

I’ve called the police on a handful of unsafe drivers: drunk driver on wrong side of road, drunk driver meandering over the line, boyfriend/girlfriend stopped at a traffic light in separate vehicles getting into a domestic assault territory (and backing up rush hour traffic), etc.

drunk drivers all day long

I frequently call the police (2 to 4 times a year) and have the number saved for all my local cities.

Why?

Anytime you see something in the road that doesn’t belong there (chains, pieces of debris, a block of wood, trailer ramps, shredded tire) they will send someone to come move it. I’m my city this service is very reliable.

Think of it this way. You are in a courtroom and the lawyer asks 'why didn’t you call the police?"

If your home was burglarized and you don’t call the cops, the police will assume you’ve been doing something illegal. Most people will call the cops just to have a police report on file for the insurance or to claim a tax loss.

I distrust them they’ve tried to stitch me up and failed a few times now, I’d be more likely to talk to paramilitary groups if I needed real justice (I live in Belfast).

Maybe if I saw someone else being robbed or something I’d make an anonymous call and get out of the area but that’s about it.

If you’re ok with the possibility of someone (potentially you) dying, call the cops

In my experience police have always been kind and helpful. Not everyone has the same experience I suppose.

German here, with relatively moderate bullpigs. I never had bad experiences with them, and most reports of right-wing content (eg. in chats) pile in eastern germany (saxony etc.). And abuse from them is pretty rare afaik, but there are famous reports of drunk people being killed and one drunk non-white person being burned (maybe alive), again in eastern germany. Overall, here in western parts, I would trust them. Basically with everything. In eastern germany I’d be very careful with anything a right-winger might be biased against.

I called recently when somebody was trying to break into my car while I was in it. Not that it made any difference. I managed to get away and never heard back from the cops.

I should get a concealed carry permit.

I’ve called the police twice, once while walking home in the early hours, a car left the road and decided to try and run me over on a football field. Another time, after hours in a closed pub, people were trying to break in, throwing chairs at the windows and pepper spraying through the side door. Both times was equally pointless.

If I’m in a country where police mostly do what they’re supposed to do. I don’t live in the USA and I’ve called the cops for unclear and probably dangerous situations, traffic accidents… So far everything turned out well.

In many jurisdictions you can just file a police report on a self-serve website. This avoids them showing up and shooting your dog and usually suffices for a claim.

Last time I called them, it was because I got home late and my backdoor window was shattered. I had recently broke up with an unstable person, so I phoned the cops the next day just to make a report.

They called my ex, who initially denied it at first and tried to say I was a meth dealer or something. Eventually, the cop said she admitted doing it and asked if I wanted to press charges. I declined.

I reconnected with her years later in 2021 during the pandemic. It did not end well yet again, but at least no one got hurt and no property was destroyed this time around.

Burglary of my house, kidnapping, missing person, missing vehicle presumed stolen (after checking any other options), and in case a certain few unstable people I know showed up at my front door and refused to leave.

I’ve debated calling the non-emergency number to ask what the speed limit was on an unmarked stretch of road, but decided not to.