A study by the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association has found that just under two thirds (64%) of small to medium sized retail businesses have been victims of crime in the past 12 months.
In addition, more than half of the business owners surveyed in Dublin (53%) said that they had been victims of crime in the past year.
The ISME National Crime Survey, published last week, found that retail was the hardest hit sector when it came to crime, ahead of Manufacturing (44%) and Construction (42%).
“The current business environment is tough enough without owner-managers also having to be concerned with rising crime levels and costs," said ISME chief executive Mark Fielding.
The study found that across all industries, only 5% of respondents said that they had confidence that if they were a victim of crime, the criminal would be apprehended. 18% of companies said that they do not report crime to authorities, as they believe it will either be considered 'too trivial' or 'likely to go unpunished'.
“Any attack on small and medium (SME) business is an attack on business viability, economic stability and, by extension, social prosperity," said Fielding. "Not only does the small business sector appear to be under attack from crime but the probability of repeat victimisation is high and criminals know the risk of apprehension and penalty is low.”
After Dublin City, the next highest incidence of crime was reported in Leinster (39%), followed by Dublin County (37%) and Munster (33%).
A separate survey yesterday by InterTrade Ireland found that there was a drop off in the number of SMEs experiencing growth in the second quarter of the year, with 27% reporting growth between April and June, down from 37% in Q1. However, 69% of firms questioned in the study said that they have plans to invest in their business over the coming year.
© 2014 - Checkout Magazine by Stephen Wynne-Jones
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