Personal items such as jewellery and clothing are the most likely to be stolen in Australian households according to new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
This comes as the rate of household robberies lifted from 1.8 per cent of all households to an estimated 2.1 per cent of all households (or 217,600) for 2023-2024.
Three quarters of the total estimated robberies (75 per cent) reported the most recent incident to police.
Of those who reported the robbery, 27 per cent of the items stolen include personal items such as jewellery and clothing – or an estimated 58,000 in total – followed by bicycles or sporting equipment (16 per cent or 34,300), tools (15 per cent or 33,200) and money, purse or wallet (14 per cent or 31,200).
When it comes to theft from a motor vehicle, ABS data shows that money, purses or wallets are more likely to be stolen over the last two years, at 38 per cent or 82,900. Personal items such as jewellery and clothing come in second at 35 per cent or 75,600.
However, the rate of stealing from motor vehicles is relatively similar to the prior corresponding period.
The slight rise in overall household robberies comes as theft across retail stores lifted by 10.4 per cent in regional New South Wales, according to the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR), with store theft up in three of 15 greater Sydney locations and in three of 13 regional locations.
The ten-year average of retail store theft is up 2.7 per cent.
NSW BOCSAR Jackie Fitzgerald said while some areas of crime are up, total crime levels have been relatively stable over the past two years.
“None of the 13 major crime categories increased in the two-years to December 2024, while one, steal from motor vehicle, fell significantly,” Fitzgerald said.
“For many offences, the recent stable trend follows years of decline. As a consequence, recorded incidents of robbery, break and enter, general stealing and malicious damage to property are all much lower than a decade ago.
“Recorded incidents of domestic assault, non-domestic assault and sexual violence, however, have increased over the past decade.”
Fitzgerald added that one unfortunate outlier in the latest crime statistics is the high number of murders recorded.
“In 2024, NSW recorded 85 murder victims, marking the highest annual number since 2014, when the state recorded 93 murder victims.
“The large number of murders in 2024 is due to an unusually high number of events involving multiple murder victims; with the incident in April 2024 at the Westfield Bondi Junction shopping centre accounting for six victims alone.”
Meanwhile in Victoria, retail store theft has risen by 47.1 per cent – or from 5,970 to 18,644 – in 2024 compared to 2023. This is according to the Crime Statistics Agency in Victoria, which added that overall theft incidents increased by 36 per cent or 11,098 to 41,890 alleged offender incidents.
Overall alleged offender incidents increased by 17.1 per cent to 187,496 in the last 12 months, as did the rate up 14.3 per cent to 3,042.2 per 100,000.
This all comes as the rate of recorded offences increased, up 13.2 per cent to 8,691.6 per 100,000 Victorians in the last 12 months, while the number of offences increased 15.7 per cent to 605,640.
Property and deception offences had the largest increase in the last 12 months, up 21.9 per cent or 63,479 to 353,624 offences. The main drivers of the increase were theft offences, which was up 51,248 to 225,958 offences and steal from a motor vehicle offences, which were up 18,929 to 75,731 offences in the last 12 months.
In the 12 months to December 31, 2024, the number of criminal incidents increased, up 18.7 per cent or 71,885 to 456,453 incidents. The rate also increased, up 16.1 per cent to 6,550.6 per 100,000 Victorians.
Criminal incidents have reached their highest recorded figures since the commencement of CSA reporting in 2004-05.
"The rate of theft offences being recorded per 100,000 Victorians has exceeded historical peaks, driven by record-high numbers of steal from motor vehicle, steal from retail store and motor vehicle theft offences recorded by Victoria Police in 2024," CSA chief statistician Fiona Dowsley said.
“These increasingly prevalent theft offences can be opportunistic in nature and may be linked to cost of living pressures, especially for increases in shoplifting where increases are linked to adult offenders often in their 30s. Younger alleged offenders tend to be involved in theft offences involving motor vehicles.”