Security and Alarm Systems Blog

Just having an alarm system may reduce your chance of a break-in, according to recent studies.
With the economy still faltering, police expect to see more home burglaries. And alarm companies report plenty of customers.

“Our business numbers are up,” said Mark Thompson, of Smith-Thompson Security. “There’s a certain sense of urgency.”

Two recent studies show alarm systems do more than just alert authorities.

“We used to joke about the yard sign being out front as being deterrent,” Thompson said. “We do believe, at this point, it very well may be.”

Neighborhoods with an increase in alarm systems also saw a reduction in crime, according to a study at Rutgers University.

A different student at Temple University found that alarms reduce the chance of a break-in by two-thirds.

“If you’re going to get an alarm, put the stickers in the window, put the sign in the yard where it can actually be seen from the street,” said Todd Dearing, of Grapevine police.

The Trimmier family said their security system buys them an extra peace of mind.

“With the economy how it is, we decided we probably need to go ahead and activate the alarm system we’ve had for six years and start getting it monitored,” homeowner Janelle Trimmier said.
The systems are also becoming more popular because they’re now more affordable. An average system can be installed for between $300 and $1,000.

In addition, thanks to wireless technology, alarm systems no longer require wires to be run through a home.
republished from NBC Story on July 22, 2009

Theft increase in the UK

Is this related to the downturn? A leaked document from the UK government says “yes.” Unemployment rose over this period, but has improved since the beginning of the year.

There are many ways for a burglar to enter your Home or Business. Here is a breakdown of the methods intruders enter homes:
34% Front Door
23% First Floor Window
22% Back Door
9% Garage
4% Basement
2% Storage Area
6% Other
Burglars have a good variety of methods to enter a home. This makes it extremely important for your security system to offer coverage of every entry/exit point in your house. A $99 system might cover your front door and a few windows, but you can see from the statistics above that your house will still be very vulnerable.

Homes without security systems are about 3 times more likely to be broken into, and a burglary occurs somewhere in the United States every 15.4 seconds (FBI). Businesses without Security systems are 4-1/2 times more likely to be robbed than commercial locations with security in place. The average loss of burglary victim amounts to $1,834.

More interesting Burglar Facts:

Burglaries are usually committed when the dwelling is unoccupied.
66.2 percent of Burglaries occur in Homes (FBI 2006)
63.1 percent of residential burglaries took place during the day.
56.7 percent of Commercial burglaries occurred at night.
The rates of burglaries increase in the summer months.