# Crime in Estepona



## sarah6619 (Apr 2, 2015)

Hi

I know this has been asked before, in 2012. I am looking to see for feedback on what the crime level is like in Estepona.

My partner arrived this morning and parked up, then walked around Estepona. I received a call from him saying how wonderful it was and he was sure I would love it there.

5 hours later I get another call. he had arrived at his friends in Tesorillo went to get his bag out of the boot only to find it had been gemmied open and his possession stolen. This happened within 3 hours of being in estepona. He is now at the police station, has forfeited his 1000£ deposit and has nothing to wear. Luckily because we currently live in Italy he has a man bag and passport/card/ipad were in that.

I read a post from 2012 and there were two comments see below:
1 All one can do is take reasonable precautions. Having been burgled -down to our carelessness, we should have hung a 'Bienvenido' sign on our garden gates - we now make sure the house is locked, shuttered and alarmed. I rarely go out with anything of value in my bag - cash and credit cards are kept in a slimline very discrete money belt on my person and my phone is in my pocket.

2 During the peak tourist season, there is always a spate of car break ins - they target the obvious rental cars parked at the beach etc... 

I am security conscious and lived in London but never apart from locks on the windows & good front doors locks had to do anything else. Is it really that bad in Estepona you need house alarms and close all your shutters so you are in a prison. ???

Also I have a motorbike is that at risk of being nicked, what about the car? I never leave anything in the car but getting it broken into still incurs money.

I want to get a level headed view of Estepona but past comments make me feel it is worse than London.

Can I have some realistic sensible answers from a range of people with different types of property. It seems many properties are gated but comments from before seem to indicate even they are not safe.


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## amespana (Nov 10, 2009)

We live in a predominantly Spanish apartment building in Estepona town.We have owned our apartment from new for 15 years,originally as a much visited holiday home and for the past year as residents.During that time we have experienced no crime whatsoever.We have underground parking for our car and are surrounded by neighbours.
At this time of year with the arrival of the tourists we start to hear of tourists' cars being targeted for brake ins and bag snatching,usually at supermarket car parks.
Personally I feel safer here in Estepona than I do in any of the many countries I have spent time.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

I live in a house in a middle class village which is part of Estepona. We live on a 'normal' street, not part of a community, gated or open. We were burgled, in fact it is my comment about our carelessness that you quoted.
To say that crime in Estepona is on a par with London or any UK city is frankly ridiculous. Yes, there is crime here, mainly non-violent pickpocketing, that kind of thing. You do have to be very careful, as in any town, city or even village. It's the same the world over. 
I lived in London, have family and friends living there. All have tales of break-ins and street crime. It seems the threat of violence often accompanies these crimes.
I have been robbed in Venice, experienced five attempts at street robberies whilst living in Prague and this has taught me to be ultra-cautious and suspicious wherever I am.
But I feel safer in Estepona than in most places in spite of the many true tales of theft.
I'd rather lose my bag than my life.


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## sarah6619 (Apr 2, 2015)

thank you both. I have traveled the world so like I hope most sensible traveller's don't try to leave myself open to these things and take sensible precautions as others have suggested.
My partner is looking now so I am sure he will be able to get a feeling for it and be able to talk to people whist there. He spends the last 3 days in Calle Gibralter so he will be in the middle of it all.

The positive news is because he is used to Italy he had his man bag with all the important documents so they were not taken only his small suitcase. When he went to the police station he was surprised to find they had his bag there as they had dumped it in the next car park as only contained cloths.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

sarah6619 said:


> thank you both. I have traveled the world so like I hope most sensible traveller's don't try to leave myself open to these things and take sensible precautions as others have suggested.
> My partner is looking now so I am sure he will be able to get a feeling for it and able to talk to people whist there. He spends the last 3 days in Calle Gibralter so he will be in the middle of it all.
> 
> The positive news is because he is used to Italy he had his man bag with all the important documents so they were not taken only his small suitcase. When he went to the police station he was surprised to find they had his bag there as they had dumped it in the next car park as only contained cloths.


That's good. Goes to show Spanish or Spanish-based thieves aren't vindictive....
I take the same precautions in Estepona as I would anywhere. Times are hard here and whilst poverty is no excuse for theft it's an explanation - see figures for crime during the Thatcher/Major Governments in the UK.

The fact that tomorrow night/early Saturday morning two very 'mature' UK females will return to their parked car in Estepona after a night out at our flamenco club, walking through an unlit public park with dense foliage to reach the car park, speaks volumes. We confidently expect that car and selves will return home unscathed.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

A friend has a real estate business in Calle Gibraltar. Quiet neighbourhood off Avda de Andalucia.


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## xolo (May 25, 2014)

While not Estepona, I was in Santiago de Compostela recently taking classes and I was amazed by the high level of public safety.


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## extranjero (Nov 16, 2012)

The advice I would give anyone, wherever they live, is:
Ladies, don't carry a handbag, use a shoulder or bum bag
Handbags get put on the floor, left in supermarket trollies, on tables etc, so easy for the opportunist thieves
I know you are supposed to carry your passport, but most are unwilling to, understandably, as it is very expensive and inconvenient to have to replace it.
I carry a notarised copy, which police may, or not, accept.
Don't be distracted by the common ploy of a thief asking you directions, holding a map.
If he's got a map he doesn't need you to give him directions!
They sometimes spread the map over the table where you are sitting, covering your purse and phone, which they then steal from underneath.
Don't leave your bag in the boot, on the car seat next to you, or in the seat well.
Be wary of any stranger, however chatty and friendly. Watch out if someone "accidently" bumps into you or says they're unwell
It is awful to be distrustful, but that's the way it is.
I've been the victim of ditraction crime, and it leaves you feeling sick and foolish


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

extranjero said:


> The advice I would give anyone, wherever they live, is:
> Ladies, don't carry a handbag, use a shoulder or bum bag
> Handbags get put on the floor, left in supermarket trollies, on tables etc, so easy for the opportunist thieves
> I know you are supposed to carry your passport, but most are unwilling to, understandably, as it is very expensive and inconvenient to have to replace it.
> ...


Very good advice -I too have fallen prey to pickpockets (3 times, how careless must I have been - once in Spain, once in Paris and once in Amsterdam) and once had my handbag stolen when I put it down on the floor of a shop in Manchester. I've had to learn the hard way, and as you say it's a horrible feeling.

As well as the sensible advice in your post I also never carry my credit/debit cards in my purse but in a separate pocket in my bag, and put some cash in a separate place as well. I bought a small bell (like the ones for cat collars) from a bazaar shop and attached it to my purse so it's less likely someone could remove it without me noticing.


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## alborino (Dec 13, 2014)

Lynn R said:


> I bought a small bell (like the ones for cat collars) from a bazaar shop and attached it to my purse so it's less likely someone could remove it without me noticing.







Very smart, I like it, like it a lot. Don't know what the cat will get up to though


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## sarah6619 (Apr 2, 2015)

I would never do that always keep to well lit areas, populated and don't flash the jewelry or money etc only have the basics so if it gets stolen then maybe only a little cash goes. I also have a cheap crappy spare mobile I use for going out so if it gets stolen they have the 8yrs old phone which you could buy another for a tenner


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## Tilley (Jun 10, 2012)

I do find the comparison to London wearing, having lived on the outskirts most of my life, and formerly working in inner London for 35 plus years. 

There are 8 million people in London and on a pro-rate basis to that number you are unlikely to be involved in crime, statistically it's a pretty safe city. In true Brit style general crime stats are also well recorded, causing a huge bureaucratic burden the police moan about & the public moan as they would rather see them Police on the street not behind a computer. Incidents go down that in say Cyprus wouldn't even be registered by the Police, they would just tell the people to move on etc.

A few years back I remember sitting an the office in the east end next to an Italian guy I worked with who thought he had left his bike unpadlocked outside his flat in Bethnal Green, he obsessed about it all day. He was gobsmacked to get home find it was unlocked but not nicked apparently it wouldn't have lasted an hour outside his Dad's place in Rome lol. Crime is always about, different crimes, different places, sometimes victims of crime don't take sensible precautions etc.

Personally I've always been happy to live in Cul de Sacs, apparently burglars prefer open ended streets  makes sense I guess.


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