Secure your homes guys

[mickey house]

Some of you may recall that when I was in Florida in early December masked guys attempted to break into my home via the front door at about 7pm. My son and girlfriend were in the house at the time, and fortunately they ran off when they realised someone was in the house (thank god).

I have a decent burglar alarm and the police were impressed with the quality of my cctv images.

I admit that we often popped out and didn't double lock our front door (that is now always double locked whether we are in or out of the house). We had basic locks and now we have anti drill locks, plus we have other additional measures in place (which I won't divulge on a public forum). Our house isn't big and it's surrounded by other houses.

Since the attempted break in we keep an eye on crime in our local area and we are surprised how many burglaries or attempted ones there are.

I have spoken to loads of people since my incident including my customers and it's interesting how many don't even double lock their front door when they go to bed. In fact only last week I fitted a couple of floodlights and a cttv camera for a local guy who woke up in the morning to find his front door open and his newish nice car gone from the drive. It's a fact that a large proportion of people with alarms don't even set them, and some never set them at night when they go to bed.

Crime is on the rise, and unfortunately some people buy gadgets like Ring doorbells which have their uses but realistically prevent very few burglaries.

I was monitoring our cctv live from Florida after the incident, but even if I saw someone break into my house via cctv, the police don't class this as a priority response unless people are in the house and could be at risk.

I used to install alarms, and sadly many people only get them after a burglary. There is no doubt that a decent alarm properly installed can be a great deterrent if it's actually used (sorry I hate the DIY alarms like yale and response).

I just thought I would give dibbers food for thought, and it's best not to give too much away about your security on a public forum (especially if you don't have much security in place).

Keep safe guys.

[skalexander]

Out of interest, what is the ballpark cost for a CCTV and alarm system? It’s something I’ve thought about, but we’ve only got a little 2 and a bit bed terrace, so I worry it’s overkill!

I do agree though, most of the burglaries I hear about occur with no forced entry

[honeybun1989]

Good advice, thank you!

[Floridatilly]

I think a lot of people never think it will happen to them. I once caught a burglar in my living room in the middle of the night and it was horrific, it really effected me and I had nightmares for months.
We take security very seriously 👍🏻

[Mr Tom Morrow]

I cannot believe some people still have front doors installed where a key isn't needed to open them. So if you go out, slam the door and forget to lock it anybody can just push the handle down and let themselves in

Insanity. However the builder who built the estate where my Son has just bought does exactly this.

[Mexy02]

Although security should be taken seriuosly because they will nearly always target the house without it but if they want to get in they will . A few years back They took the roof of our garage bypassing alarms . On cctv , never caught them . So check your house insurance is more than adequate is another thing, especially outbuildings or garden furniture.
Recently again We have a massive increase round here , all during daylight hours while neighbours are home . Alarms go off people ignore them . We even have had a car lifted by a truck from the staff car park in broad daylight and because it looked like a recovery , no one questioned it! All on works and surrounding businesses cctv and not a jot anyone can do to stop it or catch them. They have to catch them doing it as most can’t be identified with scarfs around their face etc.

[mickey house]

Originally Posted by skalexander

Out of interest, what is the ballpark cost for a CCTV and alarm system? It’s something I’ve thought about, but we’ve only got a little 2 and a bit bed terrace, so I worry it’s overkill!

I do agree though, most of the burglaries I hear about occur with no forced entry

See more...

For a decent wireless alarm (pyronix, texecom etc) a local company might charge around £800, but some cheaper or even dearer depending where you live. Some electricians might charge around £600 so worth enquiring locally. Price wise there's not much it between a 2 bed or 4 bed house (maybe one additional sensor).

Plus extra on top if you want it monitored. Personally I don't rate ADT because the salespeople on commission are good at scaring people into a 3 year tied in contract. The outside boxes are dummys and every burglar knows that. Although they are monitored, the police aren't instantly called if the devices activate, and even when they are called, the police won't prioritise a burglary unless people are confirmed to be at potential risk.

Although I like having cctv, a burglar alarm is much more of a deterrent.

[Myakka17]

There are so many things you can do that aren't that expensive like lights/ radio on a timer or fake tv's.
When you return home before you go inside just look at your house. Does it look like someone is in or is it in darkness screaming out "No-one home". If you think the latter then a burglar will to.
Also position if bins, great for standing in to jump over fences etc... Is there a better place for them.
You need your house to look like someone is in at all times.

[mickey house]

Originally Posted by Mexy02

Although security should be taken seriuosly because they will nearly always target the house without it but if they want to get in they will . A few years back They took the roof of our garage bypassing alarms . On cctv , never caught them . So check your house insurance is more than adequate is another thing, especially outbuildings or garden furniture.
Recently again We have a massive increase round here , all during daylight hours while neighbours are home . Alarms go off people ignore them . We even have had a car lifted by a truck from the staff car park in broad daylight and because it looked like a recovery , no one questioned it! All on works and surrounding businesses cctv and not a jot anyone can do to stop it or catch them. They have to catch them doing it as most can’t be identified with scarfs around their face etc.

See more...

I believe the police say you are around 3 times more likley to be burgled if you don't have an alarm. If you have a decent outside alarm box and a decent inside siren then burglars are not going to usually hang around and draw attention to themselves with them waking the dead especially if there are houses around as many neighbours do take notice (especially if it's in the middle of the night when people in the house are in bed), and what percentage of burglars would risk ransacking a house with sirens blaring and a higher risk of being caught when there are plenty of houses that don't have alarms because the owners think they're a waste of time.

[signtalker]

Im in emergency services and I don’t tell people you’re 3 times more likely to get burgled if you do t have an alarm lol

Burglars are very clever these days, they know if the system you have ( camera outside) is fake, they know if they break in how much time they have before alarms go off.
Having seen the change in crime trends, I would say nothing much deters them, not dogs barking or being in the premesis ,

You can have all the highest grade hi tec equipment, but if they break in with scarfs over there mouths and face, no hope . Working with cctv I’ve lost track of the amount of people that tell me they have the highest spec image, and when I receive them we can’t do anything with it.

Look at your lighting, walls( planting) positions of bins can these be used to climb on, don’t leave keys in locks in doors, lights on timers, use tv devices so it looks like a tv is on in the premesis .
Just do as much as you can to deter, unfortunetly you can have everything all singing and dancing , if they want in they will find a way .

Jules