Fewer people in the Netherlands say they have been a victim of crimes such as burglary, theft and vandalism but there has been a marginal rise in the experience of cybercrime, according to new figures from national statistics agency CBS.

Last year, 14% of the population aged 14 and over said they had experienced some form of ‘traditional’ crime, compared with almost 20% in 2012, the CBS said.

The sharpest drop was in the number of victims of some form of theft, down from 13% in 2012 to 9% last year. Just 2% said they had experienced violent crime last year, compared with 2.6% in 2012.

The figures would support statistics produced by the police over the past few years showing a steady decrease in the crime rate and which have been called into question in some quarters.

Official police figures published in January said the number of crimes reported to the police rose 4% last year, the first recorded rise in nine years.

There were fewer reports of burglary and pick-pocketing, but there was a sharp rise in the number of reports of fraud – particularly internet and bank related fraud, the new police figures showed.

Registration

The reason for the overall rise, police say, could either be ‘an increase in the crime rate, changes in the way crimes are recorded, a rise in the number of internet-based reports and the increase in fraud-related crime,’ the police statement said.

Indeed, an increasing number of victims told the CBS they had not reported the crime to the police. In 2012, 62% of crimes went unreported but this had risen to 68% by last year.

Safety

Other figures released by the CBS on Monday show that people are feeling safer in their own homes and on the streets.

Last year, 36% of those questioned said they felt unsafe in areas with large numbers of youngsters hanging around, compared with 44% seven years ago. Youngsters are more likely to feel unsafe than older people and pensioners.

Over half of young women are likely to feel unsafe, compared with 26% of young men.