17% of crimes are not reported, survey indicates

A major survey on public attitudes to the Garda has found that 17 per cent of crimes committed in the State are not reported.

While 80 per cent of the 10,000 people surveyed were generally satisfied with their contact with gardaí, 73 per cent of respondents believed there was room for improvement in the force.

Some 74 per cent of people in the Donegal Garda division were not satisfied with how they were kept informed about an investigation when crime was reported.

The survey was carried out for An Garda Síochána by researchers Millward Brown IMS. Face-to-face interviews were done in the homes of the 10,000 respondents between January and March of this year.

One in three of those surveyed believed gardaí served the rich more than the poor. The most common suggestions for improvement were for greater manpower, more foot patrols, Garda stations to be open longer and gardaí to be friendlier.

Some 9.3 per cent of respondents said a member of the force had acted in an unacceptable way towards them in 2004, down from 12.4 per cent in the previous year.

The most common complaint by the respondents was that gardaí had acted in a disrespectful or impolite manner.

Less than 2 per cent of respondents complained that they had been harassed by gardaí or that false accusations had been made against them.

General satisfaction rates were lower across all Garda divisions in local authority housing areas.

Almost one in three, 31 per cent, of all respondents felt unsafe or very unsafe walking in their neighbourhood after dark. This figure was as high as 45 per cent in the Cork city division.

Some 16 per cent felt unsafe or very unsafe at home alone at night. This was as high as 27 per cent in the Galway west division.

Almost half, 46 per cent, of all respondents believed victims of crime got a "raw deal" from the courts.

Respondents were selected according to quotas based on age, gender and social class.

The fear of falling victim to crime has fallen in recent years, with 45 per cent of respondents saying they feared victimisation, compared with 52 per cent in a similar survey three years ago.

However, 77 per cent of respondents said they felt crime was increasing in Ireland, while more than 99 per cent described crime as a very serious, serious, or fairly serious problem.

Some 3 per cent of those interviewed had been involved in a road traffic accident last year. Of those, 73 per cent were satisfied with how the accident was investigated. This was lower than 2002 satisfaction levels of 78 per cent.

In some Garda divisions up to 53 per cent of respondents were not happy with Garda visibility, but overall levels of satisfaction in this regard reached 62 per cent.

A majority had confidence in the performance of the force in a number of key areas.

When asked if they could rely on gardaí for help if their rights were infringed, 72 per cent agreed that they could, with 16 per cent disagreeing.

When asked if people in custody would have their rights fully respected by gardaí, 70 per cent agreed that they would, with 14 per cent disagreeing.

Some 70 per cent agreed when asked if they would encourage a friend or relative to join the force, with 69 per cent saying gardaí were "fair and impartial" and 62 per cent saying the force was made up of "honest/honourable" people.

Some 5 per cent of the total respondents were non-nationals. Of these, 14 per cent of UK nationals surveyed had been the victim of racism. One in five from the EU and one in four from outside the EU had been victimised in this way.