If I am not ready to report the crime yet

If you have experienced a crime, there are many good reasons to report it to police.

But even if you choose not to, or are just not ready yet, advice and help is available to:

manage the effects of the crime on your wellbeing
improve your safety and reduce the risk of it happening again
gather evidence about what is happening, in case you decide you want to report it later on.

There can be many reasons people choose not to report a crime

These can include:

fear that you will not be believed
not being sure if what has happened is a crime
the person is a partner or family member and you do not want to involve the justice system.

You can find out more about different crimes on this website.

Only you can decide if you want to go ahead with reporting the crime to police. But it is important to know that you:

have a right to be treated with respect by the police, criminal justice services and victim services in Victoria (read more about the Victims Charter and how you should be treated)
you can talk about your options for reporting crimes, including family violence and sexual assault, before you decide on what you want to do
you can get assistance and learn practical steps you can take to help you deal with the behaviour and improve your safety.

Even if you do not want to report now, you can always change your mind at a later date.

You can call the Victims of Crime Helpline on 1800 819 817 between 8am and 11pm, every day.

But we understand that you may not be ready to call just yet, so you can also:

The helpline is a free service that can:

Updated 27 November 2023