Distribution of well-being: safety

Safety concerns freedom from harm resulting from crime, conflict, violence, terrorism, oppression, accidents or natural disasters. The feeling of safety is as important as the actual risk of becoming a victim. The differences between population groups are measured in terms of crime victim rates. Victims of crime can suffer financial or emotional harm – as well as physical harm – which can have a negative impact on their quality of life.

  • Men, people aged up to 54, those with higher vocational or university education and people born abroad or with at least one parent born abroad are more likely than average to be victims of crime. The most victims are reported in the 15-to-24 age group.
  • The fewest victims are reported among those aged 75 and over, people with primary education or a prevocational secondary (VMBO) qualification and those with a senior general secondary (HAVO), pre-university (VWO) or secondary vocational (MBO) qualification, as well as people born in the Netherlands and whose both parents were also born in the Netherlands.

Victims of crime

Situation in 2023

In 2023, 19.9 percent of the Dutch population aged 15 and over said they had been victims of ‘traditional’ crime during the preceding twelve months – violent crimes, crimes against property and vandalism. Crimes against property were the most common (10.8 percent), while vandalism (6.5 percent) and violence (6.4 percent) occurred less frequently. These figures do not include cybercrime.

  • Men are slightly more likely to be victims of crime than women.
  • The crime victim rate decreases with age. The percentage of people in the age categories up to 54 who had been victims of crime was above average, whereas it was below average for the 55-and-over age categories. The highest rate was reported in the 15-24 age category and the lowest among those aged 75 and over.
  • The crime victim rate was higher than average among those with higher vocational or university education and lower among those with primary education or a VMBO, HAVO, VWO or MBO qualification.
  • A lower-than-average percentage of people of Dutch origin (themselves born in the Netherlands and with parents born in the Netherlands) reported having been victims of crime. People born abroad or with at least one parent born abroad are relatively likely to be victims.

The characteristics of sex, age, educational attainment and origin/country of birth are correlated. For example, the percentage of people with higher vocational or university education is not the same in all age groups. This is accounted for by standardising the figures, correcting for the differences between groups with regard to the above characteristics. Based on standardised figures on victim rates, the above findings remain largely unchanged. There is one exception: the proportion of people between 45 and 54 who have been victims is no longer above average after correction.

In addition, the differences in victim rates between groups with different origins are found to be somewhat smaller after standardisation. The picture becomes notably less unfavourable for people born in the Netherlands with one or both parents born outside Europe. This group includes a relatively large number of young people, and young people are more likely to be victims of crime. But even based on the standardised figures, members of this group still have an above-average probability of being victims of crime.

Changes between 2019 and 2023

The total proportion of people saying they had been victims of crime was 1.0 percentage points lower in 2023 than in 2019. Compared to that change in the figure for the population as a whole, there was a different picture for the following groups:

  • The percentage of younger people (below the age of 25) who became victims of crime increased by 2.4 percentage points within the period. The percentage of 55- to 64-year-olds who had been victims of crime displayed a more positive than average development, falling by 2.8 percentage points.
  • Victim rates rose among people with primary education or a VMBO qualification by 1.0 percentage point. Among those with a HAVO, VWO or MBO qualification, on the other hand, there were decreases of 2.0 and 2.5 percentage points, respectively.