Gardaí issue burglary prevention advice for the Winter months

With the start of Daylight Saving Time last weekend, there will be earlier and longer darker evenings and gardaí are urging households to take extra steps to deter opportunistic burglars.

International evidence details that there is traditionally an increase in this form of crime to the extent of 20% in the winter months, when daylight hours are at the lowest level.

Studies show that there is in an increase incidence of burglary between the hours of 4pm and 9pm in Winter with Thursday, Friday and Saturday the most likely days for break-ins to occur in Winter.

Garda Operation Thor is designed to tackle the anticipated increase in the number of burglaries and associated criminal activity that usually occur in winter months by undertaking targeted enforcement and preventative activity. This initiative has successfully reduced the rate of winter burglaries, leading to a significant decline in property related crime since its introduction in 2015.

Official Crime statistics continue to show a reduction in Burglary and related offences in 2020 (down by 5,810, or 34.7%) compared to 2019.

This downward trend continues in 2021, with official crime statistics for Q2 2021 showing a continuing reduction in Burglary and related offences (down by 5,349, or 37.2%) compared to Q2 2020.

Simple steps can help protect your home, so whether you are at home or going out remember:

• Turn on some lights

• Use timer switches

• Lock all doors and windows

• Use an alarm

• Store keys away from windows

• Don’t keep large amounts of cash or jewellery in the house