Burglary and theft in homes, businesses, and motor vehicles, along with bicycle thefts and robberies, constitute what is commonly referred to as acquisitive crimes. They are relatively common crimes that affect a significant number of individuals.
In 2021, there were over 141,000 insurance claims related to acquisitive crimes. The most common crime were burglary and theft, with 45,000 claims affecting homes, over 6,000 claims affecting businesses, and nearly 1,000 claims involving boats. Additionally, there were 44,000 bicycle thefts, 6,000 robberies, and 39,000 claims related to thefts from or out of motor vehicles.
Burglaries and thefts from homes have shown a downward trend since reaching a peak in 2016. The decline was particularly significant during the years of the pandemic and may be linked to many people working from home and being unable to go on vacation abroad, making it more challenging for burglars. However, bicycle thefts have been on the rise in recent years, although they decreased in 2021. Between 2020 and 2021, the number of acquisitive crimes decreased by 11 per cent (17,000 claims). The majority of this decrease is attributed to a decrease in bicycle thefts, which decreased by nearly 8,000 claims between 2020 and 2021.
For claims related to acquisitive crimes in households, companies and real property, boats and motor vehicles, insurance companies paid out a total of over 2.1 billion SEK in 2021. Nearly half, 46 per cent amounting to 971 million SEK, of the total amount was paid out for theft from and out of motor vehicles. Additionally, 23 per cent of the total amount was paid out for burglaries and thefts from homes.
Between 2020 and 2021, the paid compensation for acquisitive crimes decreased by 8 per cent (195 million SEK). The largest part of the decrease was attributed to residential burglaries, with compensation for this type of acquisitive crime decreasing by 13 per cent between 2020 and 2021. The claims payments have been steadily decreasing since 2017.
