Anti-social behavior is being wrongly treated as low-level crime by police, the watchdog has warned

Victims of anti-social behavior are being let down by police who too often treat it as a low-level problem, the official watchdog has found.

According to a report by the HM Inspectorate of Constabulary, officers are failing to record almost half of antisocial behavior incidents as crimes that would allow them to prosecute perpetrators.

Inspectors warned that downplaying anti-social behavior could even cost lives due to the trauma victims have suffered as a result of persistent harassment and abuse.

Lee Freeman, His Majesty’s Police Inspector, who led the investigation, said: “Anti-social behavior is sometimes seen and referred to as low-level crime by police, the public and the media.

“This attitude does not reflect the significant impact it has on communities and on the lives of victims, and the trauma that continued antisocial behavior can cause – trauma that has led to loss of life.”

The report cited the cases of Fiona Pilkington, 38, who committed suicide and her disabled daughter, Francecca Hardwick, 18, after being terrorized for years; and the case of David Askew, 64, who died of a heart attack after a decade-long campaign of bullying and intimidation.