I live in a lovely village in Leicestershire, I was brought up here, went to school here, and now I’m proud to have my business here. However, unfortunately there appears to be a wave of burglaries hitting this area. It seems that along with the nice houses and nice cars, come the people that want to steal them.
A number of our customers have recently advised they have suffered a robbery in the home. Along with cars and money, the main things the criminals are after is Jewellery & Watches.
Years ago, myself and Caroline worked in Insurance, at the end of the phone, helping people identify what jewellery was lost or stolen. We know how terrible it is to lose something as special, significant and sentimental as jewellery, regardless of the value. We now help our customers to explain what was lost, and identify the replacements, so they can be reimbursed by their insurers. What we’d also like to do is help prevent the thefts in the first place.
So I went for a chat with our local Police Officer, who gave some great advice that I’d like to pass on to you.
Gone are the days when you could leave your back door unlocked, or feel that your home will be safe while you go off on holiday. Quite the opposite. In fact, PC Darren Stretton, has advised the majority of break ins occur at the rear of the property, through kitchen windows and conservatory doors, and he advises to ensure the area is well lit, alarmed, and to use window vibration alarms. He also said to be sure not to leave bins by fences, as criminals will use them to climb over.
He told me that homes generally get targeted when the owners are out or on holiday, so try to make property look occupied. Light timers for lamps to go on and off, neighbours to park cars on your drive, and make sure post is removed regularly.
PC Stretton also highlighted that the items targeted in a burglary are mostly cash and jewellery so not to leave cash lying around the house and remove jewellery before going away or find a better place to hide it. Thieves always check kitchen drawers, living room drawers, under beds, in wardrobes, and bed side tables.
Importantly, he advised that If you have a house alarm, set it even in the day if you are going shopping or off to work, burglaries do happen in the daytime.
There is a great website, set up by the Police, called Immobilise. This is where you can log and register items, from watches to bikes to laptops, making recovered items far easier to match up with their owners. It is surprising how many items are found, but there is no way to get them all identified and back to their homes! Be sure to register your items here;
www.leics.police.uk/immobilise
Regarding Jewellery & Watches specifically, we would advise that you photograph everything you have, even if it’s just laid out, to prompt and remind yourself in the eventuality. Keep all receipts, and have more valuable items valued by a qualified Jeweller (that’s us, by the way). Also dig out some photos of you wearing your jewellery, and keep these, along with the above, somewhere safe, as well as sending copies to your insurance company.
To help further we’ve got some information packs from the Police, as well as a catalogue of helpful (and very reasonably priced) security gadgets for the home, to help you feel safe. Pop by and see us, or send us your email address so we can forward it on to you.
Finally, if we can assist with any jewellery valuations, pre or post-loss, or if you’d like to chat with us further, please do get in touch via mail@thorpeandbrown.co.uk or call us 01455 635088.
Stay safe!
Jo
