Hijackings most reported crime in SA, says survey

HIJACKINGS are the most reported individual crime according to the 2015/16 Victims of Crime Survey released recently. The survey revealed that between 80 per cent and 100 per cent of hijacking incidents were said to have been reported during the reporting period.  What’s more, house break-ins and home robberies are the most feared types of crime in South Africa.

This is despite households experiencing a decline in housebreak-in and home robberies from 931 000 incidents in 2010 to 807 000 in 2015/16.

The results of the Victims of Crime Survey for 2015/16 were released by Statistics South Africa on Tuesday. The nationwide household based survey examines perceptions and experiences of citizens in all nine provinces.

The survey also revealed that from 2011 to 2015/16, there was a noticeable decline in the percentage of households who felt safe walking alone both during the day or when it was dark, while throughout the period, the majority felt safer walking during the day than in darkness.

Slightly more than a third of households felt safe walking alone in their area.

“When asked about their opinions on crime, households thought housebreak-ins/burglary and home robberies were the most feared types of crime. This is worrying because it shows that people do not feel safe,” Statistician General Pali Lehohla said. “South Africans feel that violent and property crime is increasing to the extent that the majority of households don’t feel safe to walk alone in parks or allow their children to play freely in their neighbourhoods.”