A new survey shows that many Windsorites feel crime has increased in the past year, even if that hasn’t been statistically the case.
The survey conducted by Liaison Strategies, polled 800 Windsorites with 82 per cent believing crime in Canada went up in 2025, compared to 2024.
Windsor police data shows crime dropped nearly 13 per cent in 2025 as of November.
David Valentin is a principal with Liaison Strategies and said the survery asked about fraud, hate crimes, car thefts, break-ins, robberies, homicides, and assaults.
"No matter what the reality was, in some cases crimes going up, in other cases it's going down and by quite a bit, or remaining stable, no matter what was actually happening on the ground, people think crime is going up for every single category we tested," he said.
Valentin said Windsor’s proximity to Detroit and exposure to U.S. news may influence perceptions.
"Windsorites also get American media, because we're right across the border from Detroit. They're going to hear about crime that's happening right across the border in Detroit. So it is interesting to me that the highest scores are a city that shares a media market with the United States," said Valentin.
When asked how perceptions could be changed, Valentin said there needs to be a better job done with tracking and releasing data...
"I think we need more data, we need to start tracking some of this bail data to understand what people who are out on bail are doing. We need to better educate people when crime isn't happening, and when crime statistics are out that show that show crime is decreasing, but, at the same time you don't want people to let down their guard and then something bad happens," he said.
Criminology experts note that feelings of safety aren’t just about crime stats.
Housing insecurity, inflation, and economic stress also play a role.
They argue tougher policing won’t change perceptions, however addressing root causes of inequality might.
-With files from CTV Windsor's Robert Lothian