A freedom of information request conducted by smart-home security company Boundary has found that burglaries in July 2020 (when pubs reopened) spiked by 26%, when compared to May
With pubs now open in England, Wales & Scotland, Boundary warns that we could see a spike in burglaries once more
The biggest spikes were seen in Merseyside (+57%), South Wales (+55%) and Gloucestershire (+52%)
The research was undertaken by the smart-home security company www.boundary.co.uk, in which an FOI request was conducted to 17 police constabularies across England and Wales, to establish the number of domestic burglaries that took place in 2019 and 2020.
Aware of the risk to households when coming out of lockdown for the third time, the team wanted to ascertain how much burglaries increased by when the initial March lockdown was eased around the UK in 2020.
When comparing May (the last month of lockdown) to July (when pubs and other such establishments reopened) England and Wales saw a spike in the number of burglaries by +26%. Between May and June, there was still an increase of 10%.
Keen to find out the areas that were worst affected by an increase in burglaries in the lifting of lockdown, the following locations were found to have had the biggest spike in July:
1. Merseyside – +57% (increase in burglaries in July, compared to May)
2. South Wales – +55%
3. Gloucestershire – +52%
4. North Yorkshire – +43%
5. Derbyshire – +41%
In comparison, there were actually fewer burglaries in July compared to May in three areas across England and Wales: Norfolk (-24%), Hertfordshire (-1%) and Suffolk (-1%).
Comparing the number of burglaries that have taken place between January and October 2020, there were -13% fewer on average when compared with 2019, though naturally this was more pronounced in April (-33%) and May (-30%), during the height of lockdown.
Commenting on the findings, Robin Knox, CEO of boundary.co.uk, said: “Despite national lockdown, there was still a significant amount of burglaries between March and May, with an even bigger spike come July when restrictions were eased. Given that around 64% of burglaries actually occur when the resident is at home, it is important to stay vigilant at all times. With the economic situation as it is, it wouldn’t be surprising to see this number rise, with opportunist burglars sure to be on the lookout. Whether you are at home or not, ensure that all points of entry are closed and locked, and all valuables are kept well out of view.”
