Famous for its football teams, Everton F.C. and Liverpool F.C. and for being the birthplace of The Beatles, Liverpool is one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom, with a population of over 912,000 as of 2022.
But what is the crime in Liverpool really like? In this article, we will be uncovering what are the most common crimes in Liverpool, and how Liverpool’s crime rate compares to other cities within the UK.
- Crime In Liverpool
- Liverpool’s Most Common Crimes
- Petty Crime And “Weekend Warriors” In Liverpool
- Liverpool Retail Crime
- Liverpool Event Crime
- Liverpool’s Most Dangerous Streets
- How Safe Is Liverpool’s Crime Compared To Other Cities?
- Staying Safe In Liverpool
- What To Do If You See Or Are A Victim Of Crime In Liverpool?
- Protecting Your Business In Liverpool
Crime In Liverpool
Many crimes take place in Liverpool, some of the most common crimes in Liverpool are:
- Anti-Social Behaviour
- Violence And Sexual Offences
- Theft
- Public Order
- Vehicle Crime
- Gun Crime
- Knife Crime
In the graph below by police.uk, shows Liverpool’s crime rates between January 2018 and December 2018.
Source: Police UK
Liverpool’s Most Common Crimes
Two of the most common crimes in Liverpool are violence and sexual offences and anti-social behaviour crimes.
Liverpool’s Violence And Sexual Offences Crime
Violence and Sexual offences ranked as Liverpool’s most common type of crime, this includes homicide, murder, assault, manslaughter, sexual assault, rape, robbery, negligence, endangerment, kidnapping, extortion and harassment.
6431 total crimes of violence and sexual offences occurred from January 2018 to December 2018, 23.36% of all crimes committed in Liverpool.
Liverpool’s Anti-Social Behaviour Crime
The second most common crime within Liverpool in 2018 was Anti-social behaviour which includes nuisance, rowdy or inconsiderate neighbours, vandalism, graffiti and fly-posting, street drinking, environmental damage such as littering, prostitution, begging, fireworks misuse and inconsiderate or inappropriate use of vehicles. 17.53% of all crime committed within Liverpool was anti-social behaviour, with 4826 cases.
Petty Crime And “Weekend Warriors” In Liverpool
Although in the city centre and in tourist areas you are likely to be very safe and unlikely to be a victim of any violent crime, there are always thieves looking for the opportunity to steal your valuables, so make sure they are properly protected and keep an eye out for any pickpockets. Although robbery is unlikely, if you are careless with your property, somebody may take the opportunity to take something from you.
On most occasions the city centre is rather safe, however, it can get rowdy on weekends, young people flock to the town and there is a lot of partying. This is usually harmless however sometimes things can get out of hand. There are reports of drinks being spiked often, and fights can break out, especially if football games don’t go so well, with them being the reason for many of the young people’s presence in the first place.
Liverpool Retail Crime
Retailers in Liverpool City Centre are huge victims of shoplifting, with them saying it’s costing them dear and that it’s “NOT a victim-less crime as it could cost jobs”. According to our statistics, there have been 2006 accounts of shoplifting recorded in Liverpool during 2018, and 7.58% of the total crimes were committed in the area.
Liverpool Event Crime
Being one of the largest metropolitan areas of the UK, a lot of events are held within Liverpool such as the Liverpool International Music Festival, The Randox Health Grand National Festival and Sound City. Some common crimes that take place at events are drug crimes, criminal damage, and vehicle crimes.
Liverpool’s drug crime rate is currently at 6.96%, while criminal damage and arson rate has risen to 6.79%. Liverpool’s robbery currently has a crime of rate of 11.2%. While car crimes in Liverpool have risen to a crime rate of 5.61%.
Liverpool’s Most Dangerous Streets
In a November 2018 news article, the Liverpool Echo revealed the most dangerous streets in Liverpool, where the most crime occurred. According to an analysis of police crime data, the area within and surrounding Roe Alley is the most trouble spot in the entire city of Liverpool.
Between September 2017 and August 2018 alone 420 crimes were reported to have been committed within the location. Of the 420 crimes, 109 were shoplifting, 100 were violent or sexual offences and the extra 59 were all thefts.
The second most dangerous street in the City would be Duke Street, where 306 total crimes were reported, 64 of which were said to be anti-social behaviour. This was followed by Sheil Road where 266 crimes were reported, then East Lancashire Road with 252 crimes, Brooks Alley, which is located in the city centre with 238 crimes and Old Post Office Place with 209 total crimes.
For comparison, the most dangerous location across all of the United Kingdom was Meridian Square in Newham, London, with around 1,898 crimes reported within the location between August 2017 and 2018 alone, with 253 of these being violent or sexual offences.
How Safe Is Liverpool’s Crime Compared To Other Cities?
Although the crime rate in Liverpool has risen, let’s take a look to see how it compares to other big cities such as Birmingham.
Liverpool Vs Birmingham
In Birmingham, the crime rate for robbery is currently at 12.7%, higher than Liverpool’s robbery crime rate of 11.2%, Birmingham’s burglary crime rate is also higher, at 4.1%, compared to Liverpool’s 2.9%. However, Liverpool’s rate of violence and sexual offences is much higher at 46.3%, compared to Birmingham’s 23.4%.
Liverpool Crime Rate
Liverpool’s overall crime rates are much lower than other northern cities such as Manchester, Newcastle, and Burnley. However, Liverpool’s overall crime rate of 266 crimes per 1,000 people is still 78% over the national average of 149 crimes per 1,000 people.
One of Liverpool’s biggest issues is its rise in antisocial behaviour, not only is it Liverpool’s most-recorded crime, as previously mentioned, but the rate of 94.68 crimes per 1,000 people is almost double the 49.55 national average.
Staying Safe In Liverpool
With Antisocial behaviour being the most-recorded crime within Liverpool it is crucial to know how to stay safe when visiting or living in the area.
If you see any of the following, Police should be contacted immediately:
- Vandalism
- Buying Drugs
- Public Drinking
- Drunken Behaviour
- Fireworks at Unsociable Hours
- Riding Motorbikes/Scooter off-road
The local council should be contacted in the event of:
- Rowdy/Noisy
- General Vandalism
- General Graffiti
- Uncontrolled Pets
- Abandoned Vehicles
- Unkempt Gardens and Flytipping
- Shouting and Verbal Abuse
- Littering
What To Do If You See Or Are A Victim Of Crime In Liverpool
If you are a victim of a crime whilst you are in Liverpool it is extremely important that you report it to the Merseyside Police. The best way to report a crime to them would be to contact them online on their report a crime page.
Protecting Your Business In Liverpool
One of the simplest things you can do to protect your business in Liverpool is to make sure your property is well protected, and securely locked up at the end of each working day to prevent trespassers and theft. The best way to protect your company would be by hiring security guards to patrol your premises – as security guards have been known to be an excellent visual deterrent against thieves.
Interested in keeping updated with all the latest North West news? Head over to our news page where you can find articles about the most dangerous areas in Liverpool and whether Liverpool is safe for students.
Also be sure to check out our official Region Security Guarding YouTube channel for more security news, tips and tricks.
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