Improving

eircom PhoneWatch Report

With €86m worth of goods being stolen from homes nationwide – representing a 25% increase on last year’s figures - burglaries in Ireland are on the increase. Figures published as part of the annual eircom PhoneWatch Burglary Report* show a 17% increase in their incidence between June 2006 and June 2007.  In addition, burglaries outside Dublin increased by 14.8%.

Now in its seventh year of publication, the 2007 eircom PhoneWatch Burglary Report, also found an alarming eight in ten burglaries now take place while people are at home – up from seven in ten in 2006 and six in ten in 2005.   In addition to which, the most likely time of the day to be burgled between 12am and 4 am (21.5%) a figure, which is consistent with last year’s findings and closely followed by the time period of 4pm and 8pm at 21.2%. The findings indicate that increasingly burglars are not put off by home occupancy and individuals are not adequately securing their property while they are in the home.

The 2007 eircom PhoneWatch Burglary Report, the most comprehensive report of burglaries in Ireland, also reveals that an average value of €5,930 was taken from each home burgled.  This equates to approximately €86m worth of goods stolen from residential households in Ireland in the twelve months between June 2006 – June 2007 - a massive 25% increase on last year’s figures. 

Dublin remains the worst hit county in Ireland, with burglaries increasing 19.5% this year and accounting for 36% of all burglaries nationwide.  When the figures are combined with the surrounding commuter belt (Wicklow, Kildare, Meath and Louth) this figure climbs to 56%, a slight decrease on last year’s figures (58%).

However, burglaries are continuing to climb outside Dublin, with statistics indicating a 14.8% increase year on year.  Outside Dublin, the most targeted counties were Kildare (6.4%), Limerick (5.35%), Cork (5.28%) and Meath (5.2%).  Wicklow has dropped outside the top five burglary hotspots for the first time in two years, accounting for 4.9% of all burglaries committed nationwide.

The counties outside Dublin, which experienced the greatest increase in burglaries compared with last year’s finding include Sligo (increased from 0.3% in 2006 to 1.7% in 2007), Mayo (increased from 0.7% to 2%), Roscommon (increased from 0.9% in 2006 to 2.1% in 2007), Laois (increased from 1.4% in 2006 to 3.1% in 2007) and Galway (increased from 4% in 2006 to 5.2% in 2007) and Leitrim, which increased from 0.3% in 2006 to 0.4% in 2007.

Within Dublin, the Southside of the city accounts for an overwhelming 60% of all burglaries committed – a slight increase on last year’s figures of 58.3% - while the Northside of the city accounted for 40%, a slight decrease from last year’s statistic of 41.4%.  The postcode of South County Dublin is the most burgled area in the Dublin.  The areas least likely to be burgled include Dublin 20 (Chapelizod, Palmerstown), Dublin 10 (Ballyfermot) and Dublin West.

According to the report, the most vulnerable residences in Ireland are detached (31.3%) and semi-detached homes (27.7%) with the primary method of entry being at the back of the home via the rear door (21.3%).

Nick Quigley, chief executive of eircom PhoneWatch says: “Over the seven years of conducting this report, one insight remains constant – the phenomenon of burglaries is just not going away.  Though most burglars are opportunistic in nature, they are experts at ensuring the homes they target deliver maximum rewards.  The truth is that many individuals do not become security conscious until after the crime has taken place, by which time it is effectively too late.  With an alarming eight in ten burglaries taking place while the home is occupied there are simple measures that home owners can introduce today to make their home more secure, it is a question of becoming more security aware.”

The eircom PhoneWatch Burglary Report - which is published annually for the last seven years - has been launched to raise overall awareness of the need for increased household security in Ireland.

The eircom PhoneWatch Burglary Report was conducted by the OSG Group, the countries leading loss adjustor, based on a sample of more than 15,505 household insurance claims in the twelve months between 1st June 2006 and 1st June 2007.

Customers requesting additional information on eircom PhoneWatch can contact 1850 500 900 or go online to www.phonewatch.ie

Other key findings from the 2007 Burglary Report include:

• The winter months remain the most active for burglars, the report indicates that February was the most targeted month (10.5%) compared with October last year
• The areas with the least number of burglaries (in order) are Leitrim, Kilkenny, Longford and Monaghan, each of which accounts for less than 1% of all burglaries outside the Dublin area
• Kildare is the most burgled county outside of Dublin, accounting for 6.4% of all burglaries outside the Dublin area
• The most popular day of the week for burglaries is Friday (15.8%) with Sunday being the least popular day (12.9%);
• The quietest time of the day for burglaries is between 4am and 8am
• Apartments are the property types least likely to be burgled

About eircom PhoneWatch:

The eircom PhoneWatch Burglary report is now in its seventh year of operation and offers the most comprehensive annual report of burglaries in Ireland

Eircom PhoneWatch is a licensed member of the statutory body with responsibility for licensing and regulating the private security industry in Ireland, the PSA (Private Security Association)

Eircom Phonewatch has increased its customer base by 14% in the last year with 24% of new customers citing the 24 hour monitoring system as their primary motivation for signing up with eircom Phonewatch* (sample survey of 15% of the new customer base, conducted over a three month period)

Other published burglary statistics:

• CSO Headline Crime statistics indicate that 22,594 burglaries were reported during the period June 2006 and June 2007.  This represents a 13% decrease on the 2006/2007 figures for the same period.
• The most recently published Garda Annual Report (2006) states that 24,245 residential burglaries took place in Ireland between 1st January 2006 – 31st December 2006.
• The Crime and Victimisation, Quarterly National Household Survey 2006 found that for every 1,000 households in the state, 32 were affected by burglary in 2006.  In over half these burglaries someone was present at the time of the incident.  In approximately 3 in 10 occurrences, such a burglary was not reported to the Gardai.  Of the 48,700 households burgled in 2006, about 15% were burgled more than once.