Confusing reporting process deters victims from reporting transport harassment in London
London TravelWatch says victims of crime and harassment on public transport may be deterred from reporting incidents by staff who seem indifferent and a confusing, fragmented reporting process. The watchdog found that while four in five people say they would report hate or sexual harassment, only two in five who experience it come forward.
Victims described staff as absent or hard to reach, and said reports can lead to referrals between services, automated replies or no response. TfL recorded 1,724 hate crime offences in 2025, while research found 41 per cent of Londoners had experienced unwanted behaviour on the network since 2023. A separate investigation described repeated harassment and an assault during four journeys; a London Assembly report also recorded 4,593 sex-based offences against women and girls in 2025, with around 3 per cent resulting in a charge or summons.
- Reporting barriers may keep transport crime victims silent.
- Only two in five affected people report incidents.
- TfL recorded 1,724 hate crime offences in 2025.
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London’s public transport is run mainly by Transport for London (TfL), which operates the Underground, buses and other services. London TravelWatch is the independent watchdog for passengers, and it has examined how people report crime and harassment on the network.
People may report an incident to transport staff, the police or another service, so the route can involve several organisations. The figures cited come from different records and research: they include offences logged by TfL and people’s accounts of unwanted behaviour, which do not measure exactly the same thing.
The issue matters because reporting can help authorities respond to incidents and understand where problems occur. If people find staff difficult to reach or do not know what happens after they report, some may choose not to come forward.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “‘Indifferent’ London Tube staff and lack of action on crime blamed for victims not coming forward”.