Charge rates for arson remain low across UK police forces

Fewer than 1 in 20 arson offences in the UK resulted in charges being issued, according to findings published by Legal Expert.

The data, gathered through Freedom of Information requests sent to 36 police forces, recorded 65,053 arson offences between January 2022 and December 2024.

Across the 21 forces that provided arrest data, only 16% of incidents led to an arrest.

Just 4.83% of cases led to a suspect being charged.

Wiltshire Police had the highest conversion rate, charging suspects in 10.5% of 381 reported cases.

Essex Police recorded 3,212 arson investigations but issued only two charges.

Investigations were frequently closed without suspects being identified.

Twelve forces reported that 69% of their cases had outcomes listed as ‘Investigation complete – no suspect identified’.

In South Yorkshire, this applied to four out of every five incidents, leaving over 2,500 cases without any suspects named.

Urban centres report highest arson case numbers

Larger cities recorded the greatest number of arson incidents, with Metropolitan Police reporting 6,411 cases in Greater London between 2022 and 2024.

Greenwich was the most affected borough, with West Thamesmead ward experiencing the highest number of incidents across the city.

Other cities with high arson reports included Leeds (1,407 cases), Bradford (1,169), Sheffield (1,131) and Manchester (1,133).

In the West Midlands, 4,089 cases were recorded.

Birmingham neighbourhoods Sparkbrook, Washwood Heath and Lozells & East Handsworth were named as hotspots.

Belfast recorded 898 incidents and Bristol 844.

Bristol accounted for roughly half of all arson cases reported to Avon & Somerset Police in 2023.

Offender data shows high involvement of young people and repeat suspects

Data shared by 30 forces indicated that 34% of arson suspects were under the age of 18.

Northumbria Police recorded 296 suspects aged 11 to 15.

In Gwent, three in five suspects were minors.

In South Yorkshire, ten investigations were closed because suspects were under the age of criminal responsibility, which in England is ten.

Legal Expert reported that 80% of suspects were male.

Government data cited in the report shows that men are six times more likely to be arrested than women.

Repeat offending was also reported.

Twenty-three forces identified 1,319 people who had been suspected of arson more than once since 2020.

Surrey Police said it had recorded one individual suspected of committing arson 11 times.

Compensation applications rarely result in payments for arson victims

Legal Expert said that between 2022 and 2024, 464 victims of arson applied for compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA).

Only 76 claimants received a payout.

The total awarded was £102,260, averaging £1,345.53 per successful claim.

In 2024, just £2,400 had been distributed across 79 applications.

Legal Expert reported that 194 claims were rejected, while over 190 cases remained unresolved.

Legal Expert criminal injury specialist Ellie Lamey said: “It’s incredible that so few people have made a claim when thousands and thousands of arson offences have affected lives around the country.

With charge rates also being low, victims might be wondering how to get some form of justice.

“Victims who have sustained injuries, whether physical or psychological, due to violent crimes like arson have the right to seek compensation, and they don’t have to wait for someone to be charged or convicted of the offence to do so.

“As long as the crime is reported to the police and they cooperate with an investigation, victims can explore their chances of compensation through the CICA.

“We’ve helped many people who didn’t realise just how much they could receive by claiming with the support of an expert.”

Arson charge rates in the UK: Data reveals widespread justice gaps: Summary

Legal Expert collected data from 36 police forces in the UK showing 65,053 arson incidents occurred between January 2022 and December 2024.

Only 4.83% of these incidents resulted in charges.

Twelve forces reported that 69% of investigations were closed without a suspect being identified.

Cities such as London, Leeds, Manchester and Birmingham had the highest number of cases.

Children made up 34% of suspects in forces that provided demographic data.

Eighty percent of suspects were male.

Twenty-three forces reported over 1,300 repeat suspects.

Only 76 out of 464 compensation claims submitted to the CICA were successful.

The average payout for successful claims was £1,345.53.