Six out of 10 burglaries take place when people are at home,according to a new report published by eircom PhoneWatch. The report is based on a sample of more than 16,000 household insurance claims between June 2001 and June 2002.
It says that burglaries are most likely to happen in two time brackets - between noon and 4 p.m. when 22 per cent of burglaries in the sample occurred, and between midnight and 4 a.m. which accounted for the same percentage. The report noted that this highlighted the fact that people still do not turn on their alarms while they are in their houses.
The report states that, on average, goods to the value of more than €4,000 were taken from each home burgled in the past year. It notes that the most recently published Garda Crime Report for 2000 states that more than 13,000 residential burglaries took place in Ireland that year.
The PhoneWatch report estimates that the total loss suffered in residential burglaries in the 12 months to June this year was around €50 million. This comprised goods worth €40 million and €10 million in cash.
The most vulnerable residences are semi-detached and detached houses, according to Phone- Watch. They accounted for six out of 10 burglaries. Houses with three or four bedrooms accounted for 80 per cent of the value of goods stolen. Apartments and cottages were the property types least likely to be burgled, the report suggests.
Nearly half (43 per cent) of the 16,000 claims examined for the report related to burglaries in Dublin. This figure increased to 60.3 per cent when the capital was combined with the surrounding counties of Kildare, Wicklow and Meath.
In Dublin, the south side of the city accounted for more than 60 per cent of the burglaries in the sample.
The postal districts of south County Dublin and north County Dublin had the most burglaries, by postal area, in the Dublin sample. Each accounted for 10 per cent of the total. Dublin 15 (Blanchardstown, Castleknock and Clonee) accounted for more than 8 per cent of the Dublin sample.
The parts of Ireland in which one is least likely to be burgled are counties Leitrim, Offaly, Roscommon and Longford, the report indicates. Each county accounted for less than 1 per cent of burglaries in the sample outside the Dublin area.
Friday emerged as the most likely day on which one might be burgled (18 per cent of burglaries in the sample occuring on this day), while Sunday was the least likely day, at less than 12 per cent.
Mr Nick Quigley, chief executive of eircom PhoneWatch, said last night: "What is coming through loud and clear in the report is that where people have burglar alarms, they are not using them properly.
"This is highlighted by the fact that six in 10 burglaries take place when people are in the home, which means that people are not putting on their alarms while at home."