# Three-quarters know they can refuse an officer's request to search their car

Canonical page: https://data.verasight.io/politics/three-quarters-know-they-can-refuse-an-officers-request-to-search-their-car/

> Indexed question in Politics.

## Reading

Presented with a scenario in which a police officer asks to search their car during a traffic stop, 76% of Americans say they have a legal right to refuse, according to an April 2025 Verasight survey.

Another 10% say they do not have that right, and 14% say they don't know.

## Topline

Do you have a legal right to refuse the officer's request to search your car?

Three-quarters know they can refuse an officer's request to search their car.

- Yes: 76.4%
- I don't know: 13.9%
- No: 9.7%

## Methodology

- Mode: Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting
- Population: US adults age 18+
- Field dates: 2025-04-09 → 2025-04-15
- Base (unweighted): 1,000
- Margin of error: +/- 3.5%
- Module: elections
- Sponsor: Verasight
- Weight variable: weight
- Weighting targets: age, race/ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, metropolitan status

## Source

- Canonical question URL: [https://verasight-mpsa-2025.tiiny.co#right-to-refuse-a-vehicle-search](https://verasight-mpsa-2025.tiiny.co#right-to-refuse-a-vehicle-search)

## Citation

Verasight MPSA Omnibus Survey #2025-026, fielded April 9-15, 2025, N=1,000 US adults age 18+, +/- 3.5%.

Canonical question URL: [https://verasight-mpsa-2025.tiiny.co#right-to-refuse-a-vehicle-search](https://verasight-mpsa-2025.tiiny.co#right-to-refuse-a-vehicle-search)