Crime victims: number of foreign tourists seeking support services up 6%

THE number of foreign tourists who sought help from special support services after becoming a victim of a crime while holidaying in Ireland rose by 6% last year.

A total of 504 overseas visitors were helped by the Irish Tourist Assistance Service (ITAS) in 2006, according to the organisation’s latest annual report which was published yesterday.

The ITAS dealt with 315 cases of recorded crimes against tourists, 14 of which were classified as violent crime — an increase of three cases on 2005.

Despite the distress caused by becoming a victim of crime while overseas, 78% of tourists who had been mugged or robbed continued on with their holiday plans in Ireland.

According to official garda figures, a total of 2,368 cases of crimes against tourists were reported in 2006.

However, almost a third of all cases referred to ITAS last year did not involve a crime but merely related to tourists who needed help after losing items of property.

Theft continues to be the main type of crime against tourists, accounting for 49% of all cases during 2006.

Almost three-quarters of all crimes against overseas visitors last year in which ITAS was involved, occurred in Dublin. Wicklow, Galway and Cork were the counties with the next highest incidence of reported crime against tourists. However, the problem appears to be largely confined to Dublin as only 12% of such crimes were recorded outside the capital.

Britons accounted for the biggest single group of victims on a nationality basis with 86 reported cases followed by Italians (76) Americans (50), French (45) and Germans (40).

According to ITAS, almost €50,400 was stolen in cash from tourists last year.

Launching the annual report, Tourism Minister, John O’Donoghue said there was no room for complacency on the issue of crime against tourists, but he stressed that Ireland remained a very safe destination for tourists.