No further decline in registered crime

Last year, 1.2 million crimes were registered by the police, about the same amount as in 2006. The downward trend in registered crime observed since 2002 has come to an end.

Registered crime in the Netherlands

Utrecht no longer tops the list

In 2007, nearly half of all registered crimes (541 thousand) were committed in the 25 largest municipalities. This is a reduction by 19 percent relative to 2002. In the remaining Dutch municipalities, the reduction was 8 percent.

In the municipality of Utrecht, the registered crime rate per thousand residents was reduced most: from 269 in 2002 to 162 in 2007. Due to this reduction, Amsterdam currently tops the crime list with 170 crimes per thousand residents. The crime rate was also relatively high in the municipalities of Eindhoven, Maastricht and Rotterdam.

Registered crimes per 1,000 residents

Fewer thefts, more vandalism and violent crimes

More than half of crimes concern theft. Other types of common crime are vandalism, violence and traffic crimes. Between 2002 and 2007, the number of registered cases of vandalism, violent crimes and traffic crimes increased by 13, 18 and 11 percent respectively.

The number of thefts, on the other hand, was reduced considerably in recent years. In 2007, the number of thefts declined by more than a quarter of a million (28 percent) relative to record year 2002. There was a remarkable increase by 19 percent in the number of cases of pickpocketing in 2007 relative to 2006. The increase was observed in virtually all police districts.

Registered crime by type of crime

Harry Eggen