Crime and disorder have become part of daily life for many small business owners across Canada. Incidents that were once rare, now frequently interrupt operations, put staff and customers at risk, and strain already limited resources. Business owners often describe encountering disturbances with little support from the systems meant to help them, and many feel they are being left to deal with these challenges on their own.
“One of the businesses in our plaza was robbed at gunpoint. Shots were fired and a bullet hit our front door, shattering the glass. Fortunately, we were closed when this happened. However, if it was an hour earlier, someone could have been seriously injured.”
— Personal services business owner, Milton, ON
Stories like these are becoming all too common in CFIB’s conversations with small business owners. The only thing that’s changed in the last couple of years is not the existence of the problem, but the cumulative toll it’s taking on Canadian businesses. Business owners are fatigued—financially, emotionally, and operationally—from shouldering responsibilities that extend well beyond just running a business. However, despite shouldering significant responsibilities within their community, small businesses are often underrepresented in the crime conversation and excluded from the forming of solutions.
While we are now seeing more governments across the country heed businesses’ calls to action, such as the federal government’s recent tabling of Bill C-14 and Ontario’s Bill 75, it is crucial that the proposed changes translate to real improvement on the ground. Until communities experience less crime, entrepreneurs will continue to worry about their livelihood and neighbourhood.
In October 2025, CFIB asked small businesses across the country how the level of crime has changed in their community over the last 12 months.1 Half of small business owners reported crime increased in their community, and only 2% reported a decrease (see Figure 1). The remaining businesses indicated that crime levels stayed about the same. This is a slight improvement over 2024 data when 63% reported an increase in crime while only 1% reported a decrease.
Figure 1: Half of Canada’s small businesses say their community saw an increase in crime in 2025, with only 2% reporting a decrease
Question: Over the last 12 months, how has the level of crime changed in the community where your business is located?
Source: CFIB, Your Voice – October 2025, Oct 19 – 24, n= 2,542.
Businesses are not alone in feeling concerned about rising crime. A recent Angus Reid poll found that 62% of Canadians believe crime has been increasing in their communities over the past five years. The same poll found that only 5% of Canadians believe crime has decreased in their communities—similar to the small business sentiment CFIB recorded.
“Our biggest concern is to find a person lying outside the building and calling the authorities (911) who basically tell us to approach the person and see if they are alive, unconscious, or deceased. I don't think that the ordinary Joe should have to do that. It also could put us in a dangerous situation.”
— Natural resources business owner, North Bay, ON
Crime trends are often discussed using national statistics, but these broad measures do not always reflect the realities experienced by small businesses on the ground. CFIB’s survey data captures how business owners perceive crime in their communities, while Statistics Canada data provides official measures of crime levels. Looking at both together helps illustrate where perceptions and reported trends align—and where regional experiences may tell a different story.
CFIB’s data shows how small businesses across the country perceive rising crime. Newfoundland and Labrador’s small businesses report the highest perception of increasing crime (see Figure 2), followed by Manitoba and Saskatchewan.2 Meanwhile, Québec shows the lowest level of concern. These findings highlight that experiences with crime vary widely by region and are not uniform across Canada.
Figure 2: Perceptions of rising crime are highest in Newfoundland and Labrador*, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan, and lowest in Quebec
Question: Over the last 12 months, how has the level of crime changed in the community where your business is located?
Source: CFIB, Your Voice – October 2025, Oct 19 – 24, n= 2,542.
Note: *Small sample size (<40).
Recently released Statistics Canada data shows patterns that could help explain this sentiment. When both the crime rate and the crime severity index (CSI) are broken out provincially, Newfoundland and Labrador is the only province showing a steady rise since 2020 (see Figures 3 and 4). Manitoba and Saskatchewan continue to report the highest crime rate and severity, which aligns with elevated concern identified in CFIB’s data. Quebec remains one of the lowest on both measures, mirroring the lower level of worry reported by the province’s business owners.
Figure 3: Crime rate (per 100,000 population)
Source: Statistics Canada. Incident-based crime statistics, by detailed violations, Canada, provinces, territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Canadian Forces Military Police. *Figure excludes traffic violations. *Covid-19 pandemic lockdown (March 2020 – May 2023).
Figure 4: Crime severity index
Source: Statistics Canada. Table 35-10-0026-01 Crime severity index and weighted clearance rates, Canada, provinces, territories and Census Metropolitan Areas. *Covid-19 pandemic lockdown (March 2020 – May 2023).
When this StatsCan data was first released, headlines relying on the national average emphasized that overall crime rates and severity had been slowly declining in Canada as of 2024. On paper, this suggests a gradual easing of crime-related pressures and contributes to the assumption that crime is falling across the board. However, a closer, province by province look, combined with what businesses are reporting, reveals a more nuanced story. Broad, national trends can help paint the big picture for policymakers, but they do not always capture the day-to-day realities faced by small businesses in different regions.
Breaking the data down by crime type also reveals important differences. StatsCan reports that some crimes, such as motor vehicle theft, saw a decline in 2024, but shoplifting—a type of crime that disproportionately affects businesses—has continued to see a steady increase. Police reported 182,361 incidents of shoplifting of $5,000 or under (442 incidents per 100,000 population) in 2024—a 14% increase from 2023. This marks the fourth consecutive year of increases and represents a 66% jump from 2014 to 2024.
While Figures 3 and 4 provide valuable insight into overall crime conditions, they do not isolate the types of crime that specifically affect businesses. As a result, they cannot be directly compared with CFIB data, which exclusively focuses on business sentiment. Still, patterns in the data suggest that business concerns are not disconnected from reality. Instead, they reflect localized experiences and regional trends that broad national statistics can mask.
Finally, it is important to recognize the limits of crime data. Business owners are encouraged to report incidents as policymakers rely heavily on StatsCan data (which depends on incidents being reported to police) to understand trends and allocate resources. Yet many small business owners (29%) indicate they do not report crimes because the process feels futile, time-consuming, or unlikely to result in meaningful follow-up (see Figure 5). As a result, official statistics may understate the true extent of crime. For these reasons, CFIB survey findings and StatsCan data should be viewed as complementary, offering different insights and context, rather than serving as directly comparable measures.
Figure 5: Why small businesses don’t always report crimes to police
Question: Why does your business not always report community safety issues to the police? (Select all that apply)
Source: CFIB, Your Voice – July 25-Sept 5, 2024, CAN n= 319. *Filtered for “Not applicable”.
Small businesses owners are deeply concerned about personal safety—both their own and that of their employees and customers. According to 2025 CFIB data, nearly half of small business owners (49%) report being worried about the safety of themselves, their employees, and their customers (see Figure 6). For a country that prides itself on safe and vibrant Main Streets, this level of anxiety should be a clear warning sign for policymakers at every level of government.
“One of our employees was carjacked at gunpoint as he was leaving work after his night shift. He was smart and gave up his keys and cell phone immediately and ran, but the incident could have gone a different way, potentially costing him his life…”
— Wholesale business owner, Greater Toronto Area, ON
Figure 6: Safety concerns have eased since 2023, but nearly half of small businesses still feel unsafe
Question: How concerned are you about your personal safety, and the safety of your staff and customers due to crime and community safety issues?
Source: CFIB, Your Voice – October 2025, Oct 19 – 24, n= 2,535. *Numbers may not add up to 100 as they were rounded.
“We've been harassed, assaulted, stabbed, bitten, bear sprayed, and shot at by people suffering from addictions and mental health issues in our neighbourhood. Being a small business owner is stressful enough; wondering if today's the day one of us dies or suffers serious bodily harm because no one will step up and do something has us at our wits’ end.”
— Retail business owner, Vancouver, BC
The concern for safety goes well beyond worrying about shoplifting or the occasional incident. Staff and shoppers encounter individuals who may be experiencing a crisis, often displaying unpredictable or aggressive behaviour. In response, many businesses have adopted informal safety protocols including having a buddy-system, rules about who works late, who handles certain situations, and decisions about when to lock their doors. In some cases, businesses keep their doors locked all day, allowing entry only by doorbell or appointment. These concerns have ripple effects, with families wondering what their loved ones might face at work each day. This shouldn’t be the norm for small businesses and their employees.
“Fraud, theft and crime have made us gun-shy to do business. We have experienced large losses.”
— Social services business owner, Vancouver, BC
Recent events highlight how quickly situations can escalate. One business owner from Winnipeg, Manitoba, reported suffering broken ribs and a concussion after attempting to stop a shoplifter—a sobering reminder of the risks business owners can encounter. In the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, some business owners have been reporting extortion attempts and threats, including arson and shootings linked to organized criminal groups. These crimes have prompted dedicated police operations and public awareness campaigns. While extreme cases, they inevitably shape how business owners assess risk and think about safety in their day-to-day operations.
Looking across jurisdictions, CFIB research shows that in 7 out of 10 provinces over half of business owners are concerned about their personal safety, and the safety of their customers (Figure 7). This level of concern for basic safety is unacceptable, and it reinforces the need for governments to collaborate on meaningful solutions to improve the situation.
Figure 7: Half of small business owners are concerned about personal and staff safety due to crime in their communities
Question: How concerned are you about your personal safety, and the safety of your staff and customers due to crime and community safety issues?
Source: CFIB, Your Voice – October 2025, Oct 19 – 24, n= 2,535.
Note: *Small sample size (<40).
Canadian small businesses believe governments still have more work to do to address crimes targeting businesses (see Figure 8). The majority (77%) say the taxes they pay do not translate into improved community safety, and only a minority are satisfied with police response times (34%) or service levels (37%). Many owners have even stopped filing reports or insurance claims because they don’t believe it leads to meaningful action, with only 17% stating they always file a police report when experiencing community safety issues.
Just as importantly, while more than half of Canadian business owners support the idea of a security rebate program for crime related expenses, many also recognize that this measure is only a short-term response to deep-rooted issues. CFIB welcomes security rebate initiatives, such as the one recently introduced by the Manitoba government, but meaningful and lasting improvements will require additional solutions implemented alongside it.
Figure 8: Small businesses overwhelmingly call for a strengthened Criminal Code, and disagree tax dollars translate into a safer community
Question: Please indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with the following statements.
Source: CFIB, Your Voice – October 2025, Oct 19 – 24, n= 2,504. Note: ‘Strongly’ and ‘Somewhat’ responses were combined into Agree and Disagree.
Against that backdrop, it is not surprising that small business owners are asking to be taken more seriously when governments talk about crime and safety. They want repeat and violent offending treated as a priority, and they want changes to the justice system, including the Criminal Code. Police services across the country have spoken about how a select few repeat offenders are responsible for an outsized number of offenses. In a CBC interview from November 2025, the Calgary Police Service called these offenders “high system users”, “individuals who statistically and factually have initiated literally hundreds of calls for service based on social disorder and crime-related behaviour.” Small businesses are tired of being victimized by repeat offenders and believe strengthening the Criminal Code will help solve this issue.
“Our own small town shut down its only shelter with no options, leaving desperate people more desperate and limiting their options to survival, impacting the businesses and communities around them. We need more shelters, access to mental health and government programs to help people by empowering them and getting them active in society again”.
— Manufacturing business owner, BC
Small businesses want governments to have an open line of communication on crime and safety, so governments can learn what measures are working, and what measures need to be improved. It’s important that our governments are listening to front-line feedback to ensure that policies are delivering the intended outcomes.
This is why CFIB welcomed the federal government’s Bill C-14 with amendments to the Criminal Code to strengthen bail laws and create tougher sentencing for repeat and violent offenders—including organized retail thieves. As survey data shows, small businesses across Canada are highly supportive of the Criminal Code being strengthened. However, the bill has yet to pass and only time will tell whether it has gone far enough to meaningfully reduce crime at the street level. Entrepreneurs are clear about what they need: stronger Criminal Code provisions to target organized retail crime, meaningful consultation with small business, and practical supports—from security rebates to improved coordination between governments—to help them stay resilient. Whether it’s property theft, vandalism, break‑and‑enter incidents, harassment, or the growing presence of repeat offenders—crime has become an unacceptable cost of doing business.
“We had a trailer stolen from job site a few months ago, police doing nothing. Have video of the theft, thief hired a hot shot trucking company to pick up the trailer, generators stolen, etc. No word from police, no charges laid, don’t go through insurance as don’t want premiums to go up. Had a major fraud situation for $650k a few years ago as a supplier’s email got hacked. Had lawyers involved, cost $8000…”
— Construction business owner, Nobleford, AB
Small businesses are doing everything within their power to persevere—investing in their storefronts, supporting local jobs, and caring for their communities—yet they’re paying the price for rising crime. No employee should feel unsafe doing their job, and no owner should have to treat theft, vandalism, and break-ins as a “cost of doing business.”
Main Street is asking for a practical reset: tighter consequences for repeat and organized offenders; streamlined reporting and faster responses; and targeted supports that help owners prevent and recover from incidents while long-term issues are being addressed. Measure success by what owners see at street level—fewer incidents, less downtime, safer staff and customers. That’s how we restore confidence and keep Canada’s entrepreneurial engine running. Without sustained action to improve street-level realities, Canada’s entrepreneurial drought will worsen.