’Tis the season … for home break-ins

As Danes prepare for a visit from Santa Claus, another Christmas-time guest often arrives first. Christmas time is high time for home break-ins, with burglars operating at a rate up to four times higher than the rest of the year. 

 

The Danish Insurance Association (Forsikring & Pension – DIA) trade association scrutinised the break-in numbers from the past five years and found that home thefts increase nearly fourfold over the period of December 24-26. 

 

In 2013, there were 269 reported break-ins on Christmas Eve, 458 on Christmas Day and 244 on December 26th. By December 27th, figures were back to the normal rate. 

 

See also: Denmark has second most break-ins in Europe

 

DIA found that a similar pattern repeats itself year after year. 

 

The association recommends that before leaving for the holidays, homeowners should ‘look at their house with a thief’s eyes’ to try to identify any weak points or visible valuables that might entice someone to break in. DIA also advised trying to make it appear as if someone is home even when you’ve left the house.

 

“The practice is about trying to make the thief’s job as difficult as possible and to cause them doubt. They would prefer to get in and out quickly, so if you can create doubts or something that will slow them down, then you’ve already done a good job,” DIA spokeswoman Anja Lintrup Sørensen told Ritzau.