How vulnerable is your home

There are many different reasons why a burglar may break in to your home, although some are opportunistic whereby they will take the opportunity when it arises i.e. a door or window is left open, others will scope out your property beforehand. Therefore it is important to evaluate the security of your home to ensure your home isn’t targeted by a burglar whether it is opportunistic or pre-planned.

Ask yourself the following questions when evaluating the security of your home:

·         Are the locks on any doors and windows visible?

By making sure these are visible will help to deter a burglar as they will be able to see it will be harder to break in.

·         Are any doors or windows left open, even if it isn’t easy to access them?

Make sure all doors and windows are locked before leaving your home.

·         Ensure all your windows are locked and closed at night

When closing up your windows for the night ensure they are all locked and securely shut. If any small top windows are accidently left open or open to let in cold air overnight a burglar can easily reach through and open a large window internally.

·         Do you have any lights with sensors fitted to the exterior of your property?

Fitting lights with sensors to the outside of your home will ensure your home is well lit if an intruder was to approach your property. These will not only help to alert you and your neighbours but may deter an intruder from breaking into your home as they tend to be confident when working in the dark.

·         Is the front of your home visible from the road?

Having high walls and hedges can give a burglar protection from being seen therefore making sure your home is visible is important.

·         Is accessing your home noisy?

Consider having gravel placed on your driveway as it is impossible to walk on gravel without making a noise. The more difficult you make it for a burglar to access your home without making a noise the less likely you are to be a victim of burglary.

·         When you are on holiday or away from your home is it obvious that your home is unoccupied?

Make sure that when you are going to be away from your home for a long period of time that you do the following:

-          Ask a trusted neighbour, friend or family member to keep an eye on your home whilst you’re away. Ask them to open and close curtains etc so that it appears that your home is occupied.

-          Cancel any deliveries such as the newspaper or milk.

-          Use the Royal Mail’s Keepsafe service to hold any letters or parcels whilst you’re away to avoid any post piling up whilst your home is unoccupied.

·         Are there any ladders or equipment lying around that can be used by a burglar to gain entry to your home?

Make sure that any ladders or equipment that could be used to break in to your home are stored securely in a locked garage or shed.

Make sure you check out www.keytekshop.co.uk’s wide range of burglary deterrents to protect your home from opportunistic burglars!   

New Crime Figures Show Home Burglaries Falling in England and Wales

A couple of weeks ago the Office for National Statistics released their crime figures for the last year, showing that the number of reported crimes has gone down in almost all categories, including home burglaries.

Reported instances of crime as a whole had decreased by 6%, and the number of burglaries decreased by over 9%, from 743,000 cases in 2010/11 to 677,000 cases in 2011/12. Burglaries are now at historically low levels, with the yearly total almost a third lower than what it was a decade ago.

Burglaries by year 2001-2012

This is obviously great news, especially when you consider our economy has been in a serious recession, a time when you would expect crime to be going up! So what accounts for these positive figures?

Home Office criminologists believe that the reduction in burglaries can be explained by the introduction of greater home security measures in recent years. Window locks, burglar alarms and other security features are becoming ever more commonplace in UK households, and that is making the job of thieves that much harder to do.

What this tells us is that good home security really works, and is well worth the effort and investment to keep the burglars out. There are a great many ways to make a home more secure, and it comes down to things like...

•    Getting a motion sensor light alarm mounted outside the house
•    Fitting window locks
•    Fitting bolts and chains to the front door
•    Using a sturdy, reliable padlock for the shed door
•    Fitting a British Standard lock to the front door

Our locksmiths regularly perform security checks on households across the UK, identifying and showing homeowners the weak points of their home security and helping them get it all up to scratch. The more people we are able to help to adopt these security measures, the harder the job is for burglars, and the more we are likely to see the burglary rate fall in years to come!