OK, I see what you are saying, we can’t positively know the number, because it is just the reported number. The actual numbers could be higher. But at the same time, can’t you say that about a lot of stats? How many assaults? Even murders are under reported because they are just missing and never found.
Are these stats still useful to at least get a handle on the prevalence of how often things are lost and stolen? Even if the numbers are under reported and the actual number is 2x or 3x more, it still gives a decent picture of the overall frequency. Which is what my point was with telling the estimated percentage of gun owners losing weapons. I acknowledge this isn’t a set in stone number, but the real number should be close to it.
