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Nearly One Million Housebreakings Recorded in 2021/2022

Housebreaking has been the most common crime experienced in South African households. In 2021/2022, the country’s housebreaking rates increased to close to 1 million, with incidents reported in South African homes.

According to the report conducted by the Governance, Public Safety and Justice Survey (GPSJS), results indicated that South Africans have reported more household crimes than ever before. In the GPSJS report, StatsSA disclosed that they had written a significant increase in household crimes across the board. According to the GPSJS report, the household crimes included home robberies, housebreaking, murder, assault, the theft of motor vehicles, and sexual offences households had experienced in the last five years.

In the country, more people had recorded and notified the police of incidents where they had been victims of crime.

StatsSA collected the data used in the report had been recorded in the last 12 months. Housebreaking was one of the most common crimes experienced by households, with an increase in household crimes during this period compared with 2020/21. The increase could have resulted from restrictions that were in place by the government to manage the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020.

The number of affected households that were victims of household crimes represented only 5.4% of households in South Africa; however, almost 60% reported some or all these incidences to the police. The same was the case with home robberies, the second most common household crime experienced.

In 2021/22, StatsSA recorded an estimated 205 000 incidences of home robberies incidences, with 155 000 households being impacted. The number of affected families represented only 0.9% of households in the country, with 66% reporting some or all incidences to the police.

When StatsSA surveyed households about the assault, approximately 99 000 homes confirmed they had experienced assault in 2021/22. StatsSA had also recorded an increase in cases where households experienced consumer fraud.

The most significant proportion of households that had experienced housebreaking was in KwaZulu-Natal, as 7.9% of the total had experience household crimes, and Limpopo had experienced the lowest with 3.8%.

 

With the number of housebreakings showing a significant increase, you must take some measures to ensure that your home is well protected. Below are some ways you can ensure that your home is better protected.

  • To ensure that you have robust home protection, you should invest in a home alarm system. There are plenty of alarm systems available on the market, and installing them would send a clear message to potential thieves that your home is not an easy target. When investing in a home alarm system, ensure it provides all-around protection. Look for systems with motion sensors that you can control through an app.
  • You should check that the deadlock is working correctly; if it does not go all the way into the door frame, burglars will be able to gain access to your property and leave without a trace. Potential burglars can use a credit card to slide it through and then open the door, so if you think you have locked up, it might not mean that your doors are burglar-proof.
  • The risk of a burglary occurring is exceptionally high when you have weak, old doors with poor locking systems, as they are an easy target for burglars. Therefore, upgrading your home’s entry points will ensure it remains secure. By choosing quality doors for your home, you can improve your property’s heat retention, which will help you in saving money on your electricity bills. This will keep you warm and cosy indoors, which can be appreciated, especially during winter.
  • Installing new windows can be a worthwhile investment, improving the home’s security. You should choose windows with shatter-proof laminate glass and adequate protection locking systems to provide a protective barrier to your home’s exterior. For sash window locks and other window security locks, ensure that the parts are resistant and designed for their purpose.
  • For added safety, you should consider installing exterior lights. Security lighting around your home, especially with sensors triggered by movement, will deter anyone who wants to break into your home, garden or garage at night. You should also keep gates secured and ladders and tools locked away. Since thieves are opportunists, they can sneak into your garden and snoop around unseen at the back of your home if they want. Therefore, if you leave tools or ladders out unlocked, they will use this as an opportunity and help themselves to gain easy access.
  • The ability to monitor your home at any given time will significantly improve the security of your home. Smart doorbells enable you to do that while also allowing you to ‘answer’ the door through them, record activity and alert you when someone is at the door. An added benefit of installing smart doorbells is sharing the information gathered by them amongst neighbours and the local police force.

 

 

Have a look at 6 Leading Home Burglary Deterrents.

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