Online hate crimes against disabled people in England and Wales have risen by a third in the last year, according to police data.
Findings from freedom of information requests to police forces showed a 33% increase in recorded incidents between 2016-17 and 2017-18, from 235 to 313.
Leonard Cheshire, the health and welfare charity which conducted the research, said that while people had greater confidence to report such experiences, more support was needed for victims.
Neil Heslop, the chief executive, said: “Police are increasingly recording online offences, but we know it remains an under-reported area and that disabled people may have reservations about speaking out.
“We suspect many crimes remain under the radar, with survivors never getting support and perpetrators facing no consequences.”
He said hate crimes against disabled people could lead to long-term fear, anxiety and isolation.
Janine Howard, who was supported by the charity’s advocacy services after experiencing online abuse, said: “People I don’t know take my photograph when I am out and about, they post it on social media for others to comment on.
“The comments are nasty, hurtful and leave me feeling frightened and angry. There is no escaping this online abuse if I want to use social media.”
Nearly three-quarters of forces responded – 32 out of 43 – with Norfolk and Suffolk reporting the biggest increases in recorded crimes. Incidents in the counties rose from four to 23 and two to 20 respectively.
There was also a significant rise in Surrey, from eight to 25. Although Kent did not report such a large jump, it had the most online disability hate crimes recorded between 2017-18, at 30 offences.
A separate survey of 1,647 disabled adults in the UK, conducted by Leonard Cheshire, found that a third had experienced hostile behaviour motivated by their disability, although 9% said this was online or via a messaging app.
Another 28% of respondents said concerns about hostile behaviour had prevented them from going out in their local area.
One anonymous respondent said: “The online abuse affected my mental and emotional health, I was unable to sleep properly for months.
“Experiences like this make me worried for younger people with disabilities who may be more susceptible.”
The charity called on global media companies, including Facebook, to take online disability hate crime more seriously and to protect users. It supported recommendations from MPs for government and social media companies to directly consult disabled people on digital strategies and hate crime law.
