More than 3.3 million crimes are committed every year — and half of them go unreported.
According to the latest survey by the SA Institute of Race Relations, these figures include 82 000 unreported house robberies and 8 000 hijackings.
Statistics SA reported that South African households and individuals experienced at least 3.3 million crimes in 2011. “That said, some 1.7 million, or 52% of total crimes were not reported to the police,” said John October, spokesperson for Dial Direct Insurance.
The under-reporting of crimes has been dubbed the The Iceberg Effect — underlining that visible crime is not the only crime there is.Says October: “The reasons why people do not report crimes include victims believing that the police would fail to solve the crime, corruption, inappropriate police behaviour, fear of retribution and self-blame issues.”
According to the survey, Gauteng is at the top of the list when it comes to unreported robberies, with an average of 35%.
The report concluded that only about 60% of housebreaking/burglaries and home robberies were reported to the police. Motor vehicle vandalism was primarily not reported because of the perceptions that the police could do nothing (24, 5%), or that the crime as such was not serious enough (23, 4%).
When it comes to housebreakings and burglaries and theft from motor vehicles under-reporting was ascribed to police-related issues.October says people have an obligation to report all crimes they are aware of.Most insurance companies will only indemnify its customers if they report anything that is lost or stolen to the police, within 48 hours. “In other words, for an insurance claim to be processed, the insurance company will need confirmation that the matter was reported to the police,” he said.
