The latest New Zealand Crime and Safety Survey (NZCASS) released today shows personal and household crime has reduced by a third over five years, Justice Minister Amy Adams says.

NZCASS is New Zealand’s most comprehensive victimisation survey that gathers information on a range of personal and household offences such as assaults, sexual assaults, threats and burglaries.

The latest survey shows about 1.9 million of these crimes were committed in 2013, down from 2.7 million in 2008 – a reduction of 30 per cent. It also shows the large majority of New Zealanders, 76 per cent, did not experience any of these crimes during 2013 – up from 63 per cent in 2008.

“The Government is focused on reducing crime and victimisation and these results are proof that our crime prevention approach is working”, Ms Adams says.

The survey recorded a drop in the majority of offence categories including in both the number of violent interpersonal offences and the number of people who experience them.

“People also feel safer with 69 per cent of people reporting that they did not think there was a crime problem in their neighbourhood and 72 per cent felt safe walking alone in their neighbourhood after dark,” Ms Adams says.

The survey shows a large proportion of crime was experienced by a smaller proportion of people in 2013 with 3 per cent of people experiencing 53 per cent of crime in 2013, compared to 6 per cent people who experienced 52 per cent of crime in 2008. 

“Since we came into Government we’ve placed a heavy focus on crime prevention and reduction, better supporting police and putting victims first and it’s encouraging to see this work is paying off. However there continue to be areas of society that experience disproportionate levels of crime and this will remain our focus,” Ms Adams says.

Ms Adams says the survey provides valuable information about victimisation in New Zealand which will further assist in the work to put victims at the heart of the justice sector.

“This information can now be used by public sector organisations, particularly those in the justice sector, to ensure services are targeted where there are needed most,” Ms Adams says.

Full results from the survey can be found at www.justice.govt.nz/nz-crime-and-safety-survey.