Crime costs us billions: a plain text about victims and prevention!

Crime costs us billions: a plain text about victims and prevention!

Krone, Österreich - On March 25, 2025, Krone will be discussed on the urgent topics of crime and sacrificial prevention. The report illuminates the serious financial and social consequences of crime that go far beyond simple offenses. In this context, the violent assistance law is also discussed, which the Federal Government decided at the end of November.

The economic effects of crime are enormous. An analysis shows that crime in the United States is an estimated about 10 % of gross domestic product (GDP), while this number varies between 4 and 7 % in Europe. If you transfer these estimates to Germany, the overall economic losses could be between 165 and 288 billion euros per year. These huge amounts illustrate that crime not only affects individual victims, but also causes massive costs for the state and society.

consequences for victims and society

The effects on the victims of crime are also significant. According to an incident, especially for acts of violence, declines of work income and an increased risk of loss of job can be observed. In Germany in particular, the average work income of the male victims of violence makes up to 18 %. Women are faced with an increase in social benefits of over 40 %.

A year after a victimization, a loss of income of up to 8.4 % is recorded in men and up to 13 % in women. These dramatic figures illustrate the need to incorporate the consequences for the victims into future political decisions. The reasons for this are complex, such as DIW pointed out, because the individual follow -up costs for crime victims are usually not sufficiently taken into account.

economic considerations and prevention measures

In order to counteract the problem, comprehensive data acquisition is essential. The DIW report points out that the systematic recording of the personal, economic consequences of crime is insufficiently. The need for social and economic policy measures to avoid crime is particularly emphasized. The approach of the violent asset law is a step in the right direction, but it must be accompanied by further steps to strengthen victim protection and crime prevention.

A look at the Netherlands shows that the situation is comparable - victims of violent acts also experience significant loss of income. It is therefore essential for Germany to learn from the experiences of other countries and to take the overall economic costs seriously. This is the only way to develop efficient and sustainable criminal policy.