Domestic property crime is on the rise. In 2015 it accounted for over 70% of all reported crime, but the latest figures show that the number of burglary offences recorded by the police increased by 2% (approx. 432,267 offences) in the year ending June 2018.
And whilst the number of domestic burglaries may have actually dropped over the past 20 years, the typical cost of an incident has risen.
The average cost of items stolen in a domestic burglary is now £2,267, compared to the average £1,466 cost incurred in 2006. However, the most stolen items remain to be jewelry, money and technology equipment,
There is also the cost of the damaged caused by forced entry. It is reported that nearly half of all domestic burglaries were a result of forced entry and result in damage of some kind. The average cost of repairing the damages has risen from £477 (2006) to an eye watering £892.
But it is not only a financial cost that is incurred when a burglary of any kind takes place, it is also an emotional cost that many people never pay off.
Over 80% of those who experienced theft stated that they are emotionally effected by the incident with 45% reporting anger and 36% expressing shock. Alongside this one in four said that they had difficulty sleeping in the month’s post-intrusion.
However, it has also been reported that only around a third of British householders have a burglar alarm yet, of these, less than half switch it on when they go on holiday. Of those who never, or only occasionally set their alarm, 1 in 5 admit to simply forgetting to do so, or fear false alarms, while others find setting their alarm too complicated.
