Crime & safety
Victoria's crime figures come from the Crime Statistics Agency (CSA), which publishes offences recorded by Victoria Police. The table covers 11 common offence types in Surf Coast Shire for the year ending June 2026 (July 2025 to June 2026). Each rate, per 100,000 people, sits next to the Victorian rate. 'vs Victoria' is Surf Coast's rate divided by the Victorian rate: below 1.0 means lower than Victoria, above 1.0 means higher.
New to these terms? Read them in plain English
- Rate per 100,000
- Crime counts adjusted for population, so different-sized places can be compared.
- Recorded incident
- An incident reported to police — not a proven charge or conviction.
Safety at a glance
- Reporting period
- July 2025 to June 2026 (12 months)The CSA's latest release. The next one, for the year ending September 2026, is due on 17 December 2026.
- How Surf Coast compares
- All 11 offence rates below the Victorian rateThe closest to the Victorian rate is property damage: 468.7 per 100,000, against 654.3 for Victoria (0.72×).
- Largest count
- Property damage — 191 offencesFollowed by other theft (161) and steal from a motor vehicle (108).
- How the rates are calculated
- Per 100,000 residentsThe CSA divides each count by the resident population. Offences are counted where they are recorded, but people staying in the area only temporarily aren't part of that population.
- Recorded, not convicted
- Offences recorded by Victoria PoliceA recorded offence is not a charge, prosecution or conviction. Counts move with reporting and policing activity as well as with offending.
| Offence | Offences recorded | vs Victoria | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Family violence assault | 60 | 147.2 | 368.0 | 0.40× |
| Non-family-violence assault | 61 | 149.7 | 318.6 | 0.47× |
| Sexual offences | 52 | 127.6 | 242.9 | 0.53× |
| Robbery | 3 | 7.4 | 41.0 | 0.18× |
| Residential burglary (break & enter, dwelling) | 45 | 110.4 | 347.3 | 0.32× |
| Non-residential burglary (break & enter, non-dwelling) | 17 | 41.7 | 206.4 | 0.20× |
| Motor vehicle theft | 50 | 122.7 | 434.9 | 0.28× |
| Steal from a motor vehicle | 108 | 265.0 | 1,074.8 | 0.25× |
| Steal from a retail store | 66 | 162.0 | 599.2 | 0.27× |
| Other theft (incl. bicycles) | 161 | 395.1 | 920.0 | 0.43× |
| Property damage (incl. graffiti) | 191 | 468.7 | 654.3 | 0.72× |
Recorded offences in Surf Coast Shire, July 2025 to June 2026, with rates per 100,000 population next to the Victorian rate. Source: Crime Statistics Agency (CSA), LGA Recorded Offences (Table 02) and Victorian Recorded Offences (Table 01), year ending June 2026. 'vs Victoria' = Surf Coast rate ÷ Victorian rate.
These are offences recorded by police, not convictions. We compare Surf Coast with Victoria only: Victoria and NSW count crime differently, so their figures can't be compared. The CSA calculates rates with the Victorian Government's population estimates ('Victoria in Future'), not the ABS figure on the profile page. With about 40,000 residents, a handful of offences moves a rate noticeably, especially for the smaller counts such as robbery. How CSA offence codes map to the rows above: family violence assault = A211 + A231; non-family-violence assault = A212 + A232; sexual offences = A30; robbery = A51 + A52; residential burglary = B311 + B321; non-residential burglary = B312 + B322; motor vehicle theft = B41; steal from a motor vehicle = B42; steal from a retail store = B43; other theft = B44 + B49; property damage = B21 + B22 + B29. Data © Crime Statistics Agency (CSA), CC BY 4.0.
Sources — check it yourself
- Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) — LGA Recorded Offences, year ending June 2026 (XLSX, Table 02) · Jul 2025 to Jun 2026
- Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) — Victorian Recorded Offences, year ending June 2026 (XLSX, Table 01) · Jul 2025 to Jun 2026
- Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) — Latest Victorian crime data · Updated quarterly
- Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) — Release calendar · Sep 2026
Figures are current as at the dates shown and may change — always confirm with the linked source. See the notice at the bottom of the page for full details and how to report a correction.