40% of Ontario small businesses have had a direct experience with crime in the past year

Three-quarters don’t believe their tax dollars are being effectively spent on community safety

Toronto, October 24, 2024 – The share of Ontario small businesses directly affected by community safety issues has increased significantly in the last year, jumping from 24% in 2023 to 40% in 2024, finds a new report by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB).

“Many small businesses are still in recovery, telling us that demand continues to be low for their products and services. The last thing they need are the extra costs – both emotional and financial – of having their goods stolen, windows broken, and property vandalized. Numerous small firms are already operating on razor-thin profit margins, so just one crime incident could make or break them,” said Ryan Mallough, CFIB’s vice president of legislative affairs for Ontario. 

Crime takes an emotional toll on the province’s small businesses, with over two-thirds (69%) worrying about their personal safety and the safety of their staff and customers. 

Waste and litter (e.g., drug paraphernalia, garbage, excrement), vandalism/breaking and entering, theft/shoplifting, and loitering are the most common types of crime Ontario small businesses experience. CFIB members have shared a variety of specific examples, such as a carjacking at gunpoint outside an office at 5:30 a.m.; a father and son being robbed at gunpoint, losing $300,000 in valuables; showroom windows being smashed with an axe; staff having to remove drug needles from the sidewalk and receiving area every day; a business owner suffering two break-ins in one year for a total $12,000 loss; and fire damaging a business, creating the never-ending fear of it happening again.

Ontario businesses have spent a median of $5,000 on crime-related expenses in the last three years, such as replacing stolen inventory or equipment, and vandalism repairs. Two-thirds (66%) of the province’s small firms do not always file crime-related insurance claims, with most (81%) saying they worry about driving up their insurance premiums when these costs are already skyrocketing.

Over half (57%) of Ontario business owners consistently file police reports, but only 36% are satisfied with police response times and 34% are satisfied with the service provided by law enforcement.

“Our members’ comments range from excellent police response times to calls about crimes against persons such as robbery and assault, to treating property offences like shoplifting as low priorities,” said Julie Kwiecinski, CFIB’s director of provincial affairs for Ontario. “Some small business owners said police told them that due to ‘the courts just letting people out, they don’t bother investigating many property crimes anymore’.”

To deal with safety concerns, half (50%) of Ontario small businesses have adjusted the way they operate, such as shifting to services by appointment only, locking doors during business hours, and/or leaving lights on overnight. Two-thirds (66%) have spent more on security by, for example, installing cameras, hiring security guards, and/or adding bars to doors and windows.
 
Three-quarters (75%) of Ontario business owners believe the taxes they pay are not translating to improvements in community safety, while 78% think that governments are not working well together to address crime and safety challenges.

“There’s no panacea to fix this problem,” said Kwiecinski. “It’s up to all levels of government to work together to develop evidence-based policies and programs to address crime and safety. This report clearly proves that small businesses must be included in these conversations.”

Read the full Broken windows & broken trust: The impact of rising crime on small business report.

For media inquiries or interviews, please contact: 
Dariya Baiguzhiyeva, CFIB 
647-464-2814 
public.affairs@cfib.ca

About CFIB
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is Canada’s largest association of small- and medium-sized businesses with 97,000 members across every industry and region, including 38,000 in Ontario. CFIB is dedicated to increasing business owners’ chances of success by driving policy change at all levels of government, providing expert advice and tools, and negotiating exclusive savings. Learn more at cfib.ca.