CRIME PREVENTION ADVICE

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CRIME FIGURES IN YOUR AREA

In today's modern world it is difficult to get an exact picture of what is going on in your area. The facts are often distorted through media and social media influences for instance.

The reporting of crime is also affected by access to the police or a belief that contacting the authorities is futile. However certain crimes will be reported to the police more often than other. Burglary involving loss or injury is one of them. A broken fence or a scratched car is less likely to be reported than someone had their home broken into and having belongings stolen where insurance requirements require it

The director of Secure Home Electric was a time served police officer who spent his career providing assistance to and reassuring members of the public and victims of crime. Secure Home Electrics will not talk up crime in your area or put you in fear of crime in your own home or business as the fear of crime is often more impactful than crime itself We leave it up to you to decide. It may be useful for you to look up the types of crime in your area yourself.

Crime figures

BRITISH CRIME SURVEY

Another barometer of the incidence of crime is the British Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) which provides estimates of crime based on face-to-face interviews with the public. It covers a wide range of crime types and is unaffected by changes in police reporting practices.

British Crime Survey

PROTECTING YOUR HOME FROM BURGLARY

Secure Home Electrics’ director Mike Dixon has recently been asked to provide practical advice for homeowners in Cambridgeshire on how to protect against burglary. Mike's previous experience as a Detective Inspector and a member of the British Society of Criminology and Fellow of the Society of Advanced Legal Studies allows him to provide a unique perspective on this issue.

TYPES OF BURGLARS

When considering burglary, the first thing to consider will be what types of people who commit burglary and although most people consider they are people who enter your property to steal. Section 9 of the Theft Act 1968 tells us that a person is guilty of burglary if:

They enter any building or part of a building as a trespasser and with intent to commit any offence including stealing anything or inflicting on any person therein any grievous bodily harm and of doing unlawful damage to the building or anything therein.

THE OPPORTUNIST

In my experience in the police this type of offender is the most common The opportunist is a burglar who does not plan ahead. Their crimes are spontaneous but often triggered by easy pickings and are often most easy to protect yourself against.

This thief will look for quick and easy prospects. They might be strolling along and come across an empty home with an open window, and take advantage of being in the right place at the right time. Opportunists are often unpredictable and will steal whatever goods they can find in a specific area of opportunity. They do not seek specialty items or know what they’ll be getting before acting, which is why they often do not steal high-value items.

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF AGAINST THE OPPORTUNIST BURGLAR

Close and lock all your doors and windows, even if you’re only going out for a few minutes
Double-lock any door
Make sure that any valuables are out of sight
Keep handbags away from the letterbox or cat flap and hide all keys including car keys,
Never leave car documents or ID in obvious places such as kitchens or hallways
If you’re out all day, then it’s advisable to use a timer device to automatically turn lights and a radio on at night
Set your burglar alarm every time you leave
Make sure the side gate is locked and lock your shed or garage
Lock your bike inside a secure shed or garage, to a robust fitting bolted to the ground or wall, like a ground anchor
Install a burglar alarm which as an external siren or bell which notifies those closest to you

THE SCOUT

Scout burglars are one step above an opportunist as they premeditate targets instead of waiting for the opportunity to arise. They are not afraid to smash a window or kick down a door to access a home or flat. They will take whatever they can get their hands on that is easily concealable in pockets or a backpack. These thieves are messy and unorganised, often driven to steal due to a drug habit.

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF AGAINST THE OPPORTUNIST BURGLAR

In addition to the practical situational crime prevention above the premeditated burglar will often be looking for types of properties which suit their particular modus operandi. They are deterred by well secured properties so making sure that you have modern locks and doors as well as ensuring that areas of your property are well lit and do not attract people to loiter are particularly effective.

THE PROWLER & THE PROFESSIONAL

Prowlers are more organised than scouts. Prowlers plan their burglaries thoroughly before committing one. They have connections to channel their stolen goods through and often study their victims thoroughly before attacking a home. They will memorise a family’s habits, like watching when you come and go.

This type of burglar is probably the most seasoned and successful. After years of burglarising homes and businesses, professionals will decide to target specific high-value items. They know what they want, and they know how to respond to a burglary deterrent. They are able to accurately predict the response time of the police in a given situation and may even create diversionary incidents elsewhere.

Professional burglars do extensive research on security systems and security techniques. They do not associate with opportunist thieves and prowlers. Instead, professional burglars often operate as a group and can make a career out of it. Sometimes they manage to have someone on “the inside” to scope out potential targets.

Professional burglars will more often focus on businesses and warehouses instead of small homes and apartments.

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF FROM THE PROWLER & THE PROFESSIONAL

These type of offenders will often case your premises and have a good idea of what they are looking for. As such they may well have visited your premises beforehand often on an innocent pretext. CCTV is a useful tool for the police to catch these types of offenders and the fact that they will often visit the premises beforehand will be their downfall

There are plenty of DIY systems around. However, there are plenty of pit falls when installing such as ill placed cameras which record well at certain times of the day but not at others and having exposed wiring which is easily disabled. In addition the cheaper DIY systems often have sensors which switch to black and white more frequently.

A properly installed system should have at least two weeks’ worth of recording and should only notify you remotely when something happens. Cheaper systems only record when there is movement and do not filter out erroneous incidents such as animals or moving vegetation.

A professionally installed burglar alarm which both audible alerts and remote monitoring provides reassurance. The highest grade of alarms link directly to the police. However these can prove expensive as the police place stipulations to prevent false activations and self-monitoring by App can be just as effective.

[i] https://www.thelondonlocksmiths.co.uk/burglary-repairs/5-most-common-types-of-burglary/

[ii] https://brinkshome.com/smartcenter/what-are-the-different-types-of-burglars

[iii] https://www.securedbydesign.com/guidance/crime-prevention-advice

PRACTICAL ADVICE ON

COMBATTING CRIMES

At Secure Home Electrics we maintain a log where you can find advice of crimes such as dog theft, catalytic converter and vehicle theft as well as other top tips.