Protecting Your Home From Burglars During Winter

It is a known fact that crime during the winter months increases, particularly burglaries.

Statistically, you’re most likely to be burgled at 5pm on a Friday afternoon in October and least likely to be broken into just after midnight on a Sunday in February.

The most popular items taken in home thefts are (in order) cash, laptops, jewellery, cameras, mobile phones, wallets/handbags, ID documents (especially credit cards), TVs, computer or video games, watches, video/DVD players, power tools and stereo/audio equipment.

Our burglary rates are lower than in the UK and roughly on par with the US but more than twice as bad as countries like Germany, Spain, Japan and Sweden. The international average is around 1.8% of all households burgled, and our average is 2.1%³.

Is your home at high risk for theft?

A survey of police detainees conducted in Western Australia by DUMA (Drug Use Monitoring in Australia) provided some useful insights into what attracts burglars to particular homes (or discourages them). For example, when offenders were asked which factors would most likely deter them from trying to break into a house, their replies were:

•  A dog; it doesn’t need to be big – just noisy (61.4%)
•  A functioning alarm system (49.1%)
•  Lights on inside the house (19.3%)
•  Security grilles on windows and/or doors (19%)
•  The fact that it was an unknown area to them (14%)
•  High visibility from the road (14%)
•  Functioning sensor lights (22.8%)
•  The presence of gates (12.3%)

Be smarter than the burglars

• Maintain Your Lawn
• Hide Your Valuables
• Be Suspicious of Door Knockers and Telemarketers
• Don’t let People Know About Your Vacation Plans
• Make Your Doors and Windows Tougher to Breach
• Keep Ladders and Tools Away From Burglars
• Keep Garage Doors Closed
• Upgrade Security if you have been burglarized before
• Consider an Alarm System
• Consider Installing Security Cameras
• Mark, Video and Photograph Your Valuables
• Upgrade Your Home’s Lighting

References:

1. www.aic.gov.au/publications/current%20series/facts/1-20/2013/1_recorded.html
2. www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/interactive/2014/jan/19/burglaries-australia-statistics-interactive
3. www.aic.gov.au/publications/current%20series/cfi/161-180/cfi174.html
4. www.aic.gov.au/publications/current%20series/tandi/481-500/tandi489.html
5.www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4102.0Main+Features10Dec+2011#Contents5
6. https://www.budgetdirect.com.au/blog/burglary-in-australia-statistics.html

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