Riz Lateef was born in London in 1979 to a family of Pakistani heritage, Lateef grew up in the capital and later studied business at university. Her multicultural upbringing helped shape her perspective on reporting diverse issues affecting London and the UK.

Lateef began her BBC career in regional journalism before joining BBC London in 2003–2004 as a reporter and occasional newsreader. Within a few years she was promoted to lead presenter of the evening bulletin following the departure of Emily Maitlis.

Throughout her career she has also worked on programmes such as BBC Breakfast, BBC News Channel, and BBC Weekend News, and she previously presented a documentary for BBC Two titled East.

Lateef generally keeps her private life out of the public eye. She lives in London and continues working as one of the most recognisable regional BBC news anchors.