A victim study ( or victimization survey) (or victimization study) is a survey, such as the British Crime Survey, that asks a sample of people which crimes have been committed against them over a fixed period of time and whether or not they have been reported to the police. Victim studies may be carried out at a national or local level. Victimisation surveys are usually of two types: A criticism of victim surveys is that there is no way of verifying information given by respondents.