Mainstreaming Methodology for Estimating Costs of Crime
While it is not strictly a costing issue, the distribution of the costs of crime is a matter of importance from a policy perspective and is generally explored using the same datasets used for cost estimation purposes. It is well known that the incidence of crime is not random. Households in low income neighbourhoods are more likely to be victims of crime, something which may well be mirrored in a higher concentration of policing resources in those areas.
The project bibliography includes a review of some of the conceptual issues relating to distribution.
Empirical analysis of the pattern of crime distribution is comparatively straightforward, particularly when based on recorded crime data. It is quite likely, however, that crime reporting rates are higher in middle class areas. This has the important implication that recorded crime data, although they are often used as an input into measures of deprivation, may well understate the degree of concentration of crime amongst low income households.
Victim surveys can potentially give a more reliable guide to victimisation rates by household income: see for example Burglary risk in Northern Ireland by household type. But frequently these surveys are disappointing in their coverage of the household income issue. Remedying this weakness would be a strategic priority for many analysts.
