Less than 20% of People Believe Crime in Their Local Area is a Serious Problem – Q4 2017 Public Attitudes Survey
- Number of people who said they were victims of crime falls year-on-year to 6.2%
- Nearly 70% of people say fear of crime has no impact on their quality of life
- Trust in An Garda Síochána remains stable at 88%
- 92% of people said Gardaí would treat them with respect if they had contact with them for any reason
Less than 20% of people (19%) consider crime in their local area to be a very serious or serious problem, according to An Garda Síochána’s Public Attitudes Survey for Q4 2017. Since Q4 2016, the number of people stating local crime to be either a very serious or serious problem has not risen above 20%.
According to the survey, the vast majority of people – 68% - say that fear of crime has no impact on their quality of life. This has increased by 5% since Q4 2016. In addition, 48% of respondents said that they did not worry about becoming a victim of crime, and 40% said they had no fears about the level of crime in general.
The survey has also found a year-on-year reduction in the number of people who reported they were victims of crime in the previous 12 months. There was a drop in the victimisation rate from 6.6% in Q4 2016 to 6.2% in Q4 2017.
The survey did find a 7% fall in satisfaction among victims of crime reporting their crime to Gardaí from 62% in Q4 2016 to 55% in Q4 2017. This was though a 5% increase from Q3 2017.
It must be noted that as analysis is done on smaller proportions such as victims of crime – for instance 100 respondents to the survey experienced victimisation in the previous 12 months – the margin of error increases, therefore such changes should be interpreted with caution.
The Garda Public Attitudes Survey, which is conducted by Amarach Research on behalf of An Garda Síochána, asks a nationally representative sample of 1,500 people each quarter their views on a range of issues relating to An Garda Síochána. The Q4 2017 survey was conducted between October and December 2017.
The Public Attitudes Survey is one of a number of tools used by Garda management to determine future organisational and operational activity.
Deputy Commissioner, Policing and Security, John Twomey commented: "There are many positives from the latest survey. It is very welcome that there is less fear of crime and less people saying they have been victims of crime. This shows the benefit of An Garda Síochána having a strong focus on protecting and supporting communities.
"However, the reduction in victim satisfaction is very concerning. We are addressing this at all levels as it is vital that victims get the service they need and deserve from us. This includes ensuring victims are a strong focus of each and every divisional policing plan, re-emphasising to investigating members the need to keep each victim informed of the progress in relation to their complaint, and an Assistant Commissioner will be looking at how we can improve victim satisfaction through our dedicated Victim Service Offices.”
The main findings of An Garda Síochána’s Public Attitudes Survey for Q4 2017 are:
Victims of Crime
- In Q4 2017, the victimisation rate was 6.2%. This compares with a rate of 6.6% for the same quarter last year.
- Satisfaction among victims of crime who reported their crime to An Garda Síochána fell 7% between Q4 2016 (62%) and Q4 2017 (55%).
- During Q4 2017, 88% of victims interviewed said they had reported their most recent crime incident. This is 2% lower than in Q3 2017, but 8% higher compared to Q3 2017.
- 48% of victims felt the right amount of information had been provided to them. This is down 11% from Q4 2016.
Perceptions of Crime
- In Q4 2017, 72% of people perceived national crime to be either a very serious or serious problem. This is down 5% from the same period in 2016.
- In Q4 2017, 19% of respondents considered crime in their local area to be a very serious or serious problem. This remained relatively stable (ie between 18% and 20%) during 2017.
Fear and Worry about Crime
- During Q4 2017 nearly half (48%) of respondents said they did not worry about becoming a victim of crime – this is a 1% increase from Q4 2016. </
- 68% of people reported that their fear of crime had no impact on their quality of life – this is a 5% increase from Q4 2016.
Garda Visibility
- In Q4 2017, 36% of respondents were aware of Garda patrols in their local area – this is the same as in Q4 2016.
- In Q4 2017, 44% of respondents considered Garda presence in their local area to be at about the right level. This is an increase of 4% from Q4 2016.
Equality of treatment
The following two questions were added to the survey from Q1 2017:
- 92% of respondents in the Q4 2017 survey said they felt members of An Garda Síochána would treat them with respect if they had contact with them for any reason. Since Q1 2017, the proportion of respondents agreeing with this statement has totalled 90% or above.
- When asked if Gardaí in their area treat everyone fairly regardless of who they are, 82% of people agreed. This has remained above 80% since the question was added to the survey in Q1 2017.
Satisfaction with An Garda Síochána
- In Q4 2017, 70% of respondents said they were either very satisfied or satisfied with the service provided by An Garda Síochána to local communities. This is down 1% from Q4 2016.
Trust in An Garda Síochána
- In Q4 2017, 88% of respondents stated they had a mid to high level of trust in An Garda Síochána. Over the last four quarters, trust has remained largely stable between 88% and 92%.
Perceptions of the Garda Organisation
- In Q4 2017, 87% of respondents agreed that members of An Garda Síochána were friendly or helpful (up 1% from Q4 2016), 65% agreed that the organisation was community focused (down 1%), 57% thought the organisation was modern or progressive (down 4%), 55% said it was effective in tackling crime (up 2%), 38% said it was well managed (down 7%), and 35% thought An Garda Síochána provides a world-class police service (down 5%).
