Brittas Bay News - Wicklow Burglaries increase by 8%

Burglaries in County Wicklow have increased by 8% over the 12 months from June 2002 to June 2003, while burglaries nationwide have shown an increase or 21.7%, according to the latest figures published in the 2003 Eircom PhoneWatch Burglary Report.

The rise in burglaries in the Wicklow area means that UK-county now accounts for 12.93% of burglaries in Ireland, outside the Dublin area. Burglaries in Dublin have increased by almost 18%, making the capital still the most burgled area in the country, accounting for 42% of all burglaries. This figure climbs to 58% when Dublin is combined with the surrounding counties of Kildare, Wicklow and Meath.

The 2003 eircom PhoneWatch Burglary Report, the most comprehensive report of burglaries in Ireland, also reveals that an alarming six in ten burglaries take place while people are at home, with the most likely time of the day to be burgled between noon and 8pm (47%). This indicates that people don't adequately secure their property while they are in the house. The report outlines the fact that 2 out of 3 homes burgled had alarm system and highlights the need for homeowners to be more diligent about their household security.

According to the report, an average value of €3,500 was taken from each home burgled.

However, the most dramatic increase in burglaries over the 12 months from June '02 to June '03 was outside Dublin, where there was an increase of 25%. Outside Dublin, Co. Louth snowed a large increase of 38% on last year's figures.

According to the report, the most vulnerable residences in Ireland are semi-detached and detached houses, which account for 3 in 5 burglaries and more than €29 million in value of stolen goods during the period covered by the report.

The back of the house is the most popular point of entry with almost 5 out of 10 burglars gaining access via Die back of (he house, either by the rear window (27%) or by the rear/patio door(23%).

Other key findings include:
• Wicklow now accounts for 7.55% of the total burglaries that take place Ireland.
• Wicklow is the most burgled county outside of Dublin, accounting for 13% of all burglaries outside the Dublin area;

Statistics:
1. the most popular day of the week for burglaries is Sunday (17%) with Monday being the least popular day (less than 13%);
2. The quietest time of the day for burglaries is between 4am and 8am;
3. Whilst semi-detached homes are the most common type of properties to be burgled (30%), detached houses are second at 25%, followed by bungalows at 24% and terraced at 17%; apartments and cottages are the property types least likely to be burgled.

	This website was last modified:
News Page		Main Page

Please contact the Webmaster if you wish to add your website or if you have any queries, suggestions or broken links to report.