Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Chief Executive Mark Fielding has said the judiciary is seen as having let down small businesses on sentencing.
ISME estimates that crime costs its members €1.5bn a year.
The results of an ISME survey suggest one-third of businesses were affected by crime in the past 12 months with only 7% of owners confident that criminals would be apprehended.
Mr Fielding while gardaí, in conjunction with small business initiatives, were making ground in reducing crime the business community had lost complete faith in the judiciary and the judicial system.
He said the results of the survey reinforced the perception among ISME members that crimes against their businesses were not viewed as real crime and therefore not taken seriously.
ISME has recommended that the judiciary should impose stronger mandatory sentences on those found guilty of crime against business.
It has also called for an increase in the level of CCTV surveillance in town centres.
The views of more than 1,800 businesses were sought for the survey.
