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In 2023, there were estimated to have been ** acid attacks in London, compared with ** in 2022. Within a few years, the number of acid attacks in London increased from just ** in 2012 to *** in 2017, before gradually falling in the years since. Although overall crime in London has also risen in a similar time period, this type of attack has grown at a far more rapid rate. Most acid attacks in 2017 were committed by young men against other young men, while many of the targets were people riding mopeds. 

Links with moped crime

The targeting of moped drivers by acid attacks was one of the main features of the acid attack crime wave in the late 2010s. One of the established patterns was to incapacitate the driver with corrosive fluid, and then steal the moped, which was hen often used to commit further crimes. The number of crimes committed by people riding a moped in London grew at a very similar rate to acid attacks, reaching * offences in 2017, compared with just over in 2014. Although both these specific types of crimes have declined in the UK capital, violent crime more broadly has remained high. 

Shoplifting and personal theft peaks in 2025

More recently, the pattern of crime in London has shifted, with two types of theft in particular drawing the attention of the media due to their increased prevalence. Theft from the person offences, such as the snatching of a mobile phone, reached a peak of almost ** offences in the 2024/25 reporting year. Shoplifting, meanwhile, has increased rapidly since the COVID-19 pandemic, reaching more than * offences in the same reporting year. The increase in shoplifting offences is also reflected in the rest of England and Wales, with more than ** offences in 2024/25.