Keelif

Hey Guys!!

Hope you are all set for the Christmas period!

I was just wondering from your everyday personal experiences what the crime is like where you are.

I'm not asking you to compare it to the UK or tell me the statistics. I would be very interested to know what its like in your area.

Do you feel safe where you are and are the people friendly?

I could sit and compare statistics til I'm blue in the face but as many have pointed out it is never the accurate picture of living somewhere so I thank you all in advance who reply

Oh and I hope you all have a great Christmas!!

christmasoompa

I feel a lot safer in the UK than I did in Canada, but then I lived in a much more urban environment in Canada, whereas here I live in a very rural safe area where we leave doors unlocked, lawn mowers out on the front lawn all night etc. No crime here to speak of, but it will be very different for somebody living in central Liverpool, and the only place I've ever been a victim of crime was in Toronto.

So my guess is that it will once again depend on where the person was in the UK and is in Canada. As you say, statistics don't really give you the true story as they'll tell you that murder per capita is higher in Canada, but petty crime is less than in the UK, but again it will depend on region/city.

Not sure that my ramblings were much use really, but my point was that it will depend so much on everybody's individual circumstances. At least I think that's what it was............

Oink

There are some dodgy areas in the major cities and there is sporadic gang activity across the country but in general, I personally feel just as safe in Canada as I did in the UK.

Keelif

That sounds like a lovely area that you are living! Where abouts are you if you dont mind me asking?

In Canada are the newspapers all doom and gloom like they are here? Puts me off readint the paper because of what I read in there

Atlantic Xpat

I feel safe where I live, yet we've had items stolen from our vehicles on our drive and from our garage. We live in a "nice" area & moved from Essex. Go, as they say, figure.

dbd33

I feel safe here and don't think twice about walking the dog in the park at night or down the high street. Doing so brings clucking, if not expressions of alarm, from cradles. Even a poster on this board described the town square as being, approximately "the dodgiest place I've ever been". The worst that's happened is that a beggar who I'd ignored starting shouting obscenities, most people seem busy with their meth and their crack and don't want to know about passers-by. I feel no more threatened here than I do in London.

gillyd65

No better and no worse than where we were in the UK, outskirts of London, Ontario here as opposed to a village in NW England 12 miles from Manchester in the UK. TBH petty crime here is probably non existent due to potential troublemaking kids being spaced out on pot most of the time who can't be arsed doing anything.

Former Lancastrian

Crime is crime it can happen to anyone anywhere. Doesnt matter if you live in Moss Side or Mayfair, Regina or Peggys Cove crime knows no boundaries.
Statistics can be made to make a certain place look good or bad so I wouldnt use them as a 100% basis of moving to or avoiding places in Canada.
I feel safe where I live but I take note of my surroundings and live accordingly.

Ben W Bell

I feel a lot safer here than in the UK. I have no qualms with walking around the downtown core of Toronto at 4 in the morning alone, but you wouldn't have caught me in a city centre in the UK after dark, especially after pub kicking out time.

Jingsamichty

We lived in a "nice" subdivision in Calgary, crime wasn't really an issue at all.

We now live in a "nice" village in England, crime isn't really an issue at all.

In both places I suspect that if you go looking for criminal activity to worry about you will find it easily enough.

Drunk driving is very much more prevalent in Canada than in England.

Former Lancastrian

Interesting that you say DUI is more prevalent here than the UK.
I do know over here that the police implement the RIDE programme at certain parts of the year. I tend to think there are multiple factors as to why Canadians drink and drive more than UK residents.
Greater distances to drive home from the pub to home
Lack of public transit in certain areas especially after midnight
Cost of taxis (greater distances)
Willing to risk it type of attitude
Too cold to walk home, or too far and too pissed to walk

dbd33

Social acceptability. It wasn't usual in the UK to drink at the wheel and throw the empty bottles out of the window as you went along at any point in my lifetime. It is here. That is, of course, part of the "moving back in time" which people value.

Oink

I have seen that too. Many a time I've been out with someone and then had to take a taxi home while they not only drove drunk, but drove with a drink in their hand. Its sick really but that's the prevelant attitude over here.

dbd33

I put it down to the awful radio, all that "classic rock" makes it seem acceptable to have a beer on the way home to beat the wife.

MikeUK

That's the nail on the head..

In the UK drink Driving was a form of social leprosy, if you did it you didn’t publicly acknowledge it..
Here they share the location of the ride program, still drink and take an alternative route rather than public transport