Every year in the UK, there are around one million burglaries and attempted burglaries; that’s one every 40 seconds. The majority of burglaries are not pre-planned; they are merely opportunistic, meaning burglars are seeking out houses with vulnerable security, particularly the front door, which 73% of burglars use to break in.
A survey by Locksmithservice.co.uk aimed to uncover how security conscious Brits are, and what measures they take to prevent burglaries from taking place. 782 British homeowners were surveyed and results revealed that 38% of Brits worry about being burgled daily, whilst 14% had been burgled at least once before in their lifetime.
Despite these statistics, it appears that Brits are rather lax when vacating their homes; alarmingly leaving their windows, and even doors open. Many assume burglaries happen only at night, however, 30% occur in broad daylight. Even more disturbingly, many are leaving their keys in seemingly obvious places such as under the mat, bin or plant pot, despite many warnings against this.
The survey revealed:
– 3% leave a key under a bin
– 6% leave a key under the plant pot
– 9% leave a key under the mat
– 44% leave a key with a neighbour
– Only 24% check whether windows are shut when leaving their home.
The survey also analysed results according to different areas of the UK. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it was households in London who were the most concerned about their security, with 69% stating they cautiously check all aspects of their home security before leaving; whilst 52% generally worry about burglary. Burglaries are higher in cities, and London for example is home to 16 burglary hotspots. Those from the North East were the least concerned; with only 36% worrying about being burgled.
