30 March 2016
By Elaine Murphy
elaine@TheCork.ie
PhoneWatch, Ireland’s largest provider of monitored security systems has welcomed the national decrease in burglary, praising homeowners for their continued vigilance. The CSO’s 4th Quarterly National Household Survey for 2015 showed there were 26,426 reported burglaries in 2015 down slightly from 27,635 reported in 2014 (CSO 2016).
However, figures in Cork showed an increase from 1318 in 2014 to 1499 by the end of Q4 2015. PhoneWatch saw demand for their monitored security product increase by over 75% in the same period (2014-2015)
Commenting on the figures PhoneWatch Managing Director Eoin Dunne said, “The fact that homeowners are becoming more aware of household security is indicative of the decrease in burglary levels nationally. Homeowners are beginning to take control of their home security and through the efforts of An Garda Siochana we are beginning to see the trends reversing. However, now is not the time to become complacent, some areas are still experiencing high levels of burglary”.
According to PhoneWatch Irish homeowners are still making it easy for burglars by not taking simple precautions. A survey of 1000 homeowners conducted by iReach on behalf of PhoneWatch showed that
41% have left windows open when leaving the house
38% have left keys hidden in their gardens
25% have left doors unlocked
56% have a home alarm
54% have a secondary locking system
Mr Dunne continued “Any burglar is likely to know where keys are hidden in a garden – homeowners are fooling themselves if they think their hiding place is safe. A seasoned thief will always find his way into a property; his job is made easier if the property is not adequately protected by a monitored alarm and secondary or tertiary locking systems on windows and doors.”
Over 50% of alarm activations received by the PhoneWatch Alarm Receiving Centre are caused by attempted entry to front and back doors.
Dunne continued, “I urge all householders nationwide to review their home security arrangements, fit a monitored alarm, add secondary locking systems to windows and doors, join your neighbourhood watch group and always report suspicious activity and persons in your neighbourhood. Together we can keep burglaries down”
