Fighting a battle that affects the industry
One of the unfortunate realities about living in South Africa is that we often have to deal with crime levels not experienced anywhere else in the world. This has become a perennial problem and only seems to be exacerbated each year.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) released the country’s most recent crime statistics at the end of September, and while we are seeing a decrease in levels of crime that directly affects the short-term insurance industry, we need to ask if they are decreasing enough.
Highlighting the figures
According to the SAPS report, during 2014/2015, there were 195 cases of shoplifting and 695 house burglaries per day. There were also 253 716 cases of burglary which is a 2.3% decrease on 2013/2014 figures.
If we look at the motor side, the SAPS reports that during 2014/2015 there were 398 cases of theft from cars per day while 151 cars were stolen per day. Overall, there were 55 090 cases of car thefts (which includes both the figures discussed above) which is a decrease of 2.7% on the figures seen in 2013/2014.
What are the effects of this on the industry? FAnews spoke with Helen du Toit, Head: Audit and Forensic Services at Santam, and Ron Knott-Craig, Executive: Operational services at Tracker, to gain their insight into these statistics.
A frightful situation
Du Toit reports that Santam remains concerned about the overall levels of crime. “We believe the increase in hijackings and robberies – particularly where there has been theft by force or violence, should be of concern to all citizens of our country. More collaboration and partnerships between the SAPS and business stakeholders is crucial to counter the debilitating impact of crime on our communities and our economy,” she says.
There is a correlation between the numbers of claims lodged when it comes to increasing incidents of crime. From an insurance perspective, more crimes invariably leads to an increase in claims.
Du Toit adds that in the past year, Santam paid out more than R580 million in claims for residential and business robberies and burglaries - and this figure has been rising over the past three years. In 2014, Santam settled more than 425 000 claims equating to a total value of R10.9 billion in claims incurred.
Happy with the decrease?
While we are fully aware of the high levels of crime in the country, we still have to acknowledge the fact that there has been a decrease in burglaries and car thefts. But is this decrease enough? Can we be satisfied with it?
“No; from an insurance perspective the decreases are perhaps not nearly enough. Even the current levels of theft calls for us all to be extra vigilant as criminals become more cunning in their modus operandi. There are many scams in play from car jamming to the cloning of vehicles by organised syndicates that can put you or your vehicle at risk so we need to remain alert and wary of suspicious circumstances or environments,” says Du Toit.
She adds that the 19% reduction in domestic house breaking claims offers some encouragement, however this is countered by the 21% increase in reported household robbery (theft by use of force or violence) claims that were submitted. “What is disturbing is that our claims stats show a tendency towards break-ins that could or may involve aggression or violence. Such incidences put people, families and their personal safety at risk. So here again, people need to be more alert and vigilant in keeping themselves safe in their homes,” says Du Toit.
Lending a helping hand
Vehicle tracking is a service which has entrenched itself in the insurance industry on a global scale. This service is particularly valuable in the South African context if we take the recent vehicle theft figures into account.
Knott-Craig says that Tracker believes it can attribute the remarkable decrease in stolen vehicles - over 105 000 vehicles stolen in 1999 to just over 55 000 in 2015 - to the following factors:
- the establishment of the vehicle tracking industry;
- motor manufacturers introducing more robust built in security systems;
- the setup of provincial vehicle crime forums;
- focused effort on the border line; and,
- the implementation of micro dotting legislation.
Our role
While the police should be at the forefront of fighting this crime, citizens also have a role to play to assist the police in this.
Knott-Craig points out that other initiatives which Tracker believes has contributed towards managing the situation includes visibility on national routes during holidays and peak seasons as well as combining data knowledge and analytical skills to provide strategic and technical support to a number of SAPS units.
For Santam’s part, Du Toit points out that the company has been working alongside the South African Insurance Crime Bureau (SAICB), the SAPS, and other stakeholders on initiatives aimed at raising awareness around crime and crime prevention.
Editor’s Thoughts:
We cannot sit back and live in fear letting crime take over our lives. The insurance industry has an important role to play in covering crime and the initiatives put in place by industry to help fight crime shows that insurance is putting itself at the forefront of crime fighting. Please comment below, interact with us on Twitter at @fanews_online or email me your thoughts jonathan@fanews.co.za.
