Home burglaries decreased again by ten percent last year

The number of home burglaries in the Netherlands decreased again last year. In the first eleven months of 2017, there were ten percent fewer domestic burglaries compared to the same period in 2016. Minister for "Rechtsbescherming" (Juridical Protection) Sander Dekker announced this today at the closing of the National Burglary Prevention Weeks at Hornbach in Ypenburg.

The decline has been continuous during recent years. Where 92,000 homes were burgled in 2012, this number seems to be below 50,000 this year. "A great result, partly thanks to the excellent cooperation between government and companies", says Dekker.

During the National Burglary Prevention Weeks, the government and the business community work together to make homeowners more aware of the risks of domestic burglary. During the campaign, do-it-yourself shops, key specialists, security companies and hardware stores have offered campaigns, promotional offers and discounts on items that prevent burglary and theft. In addition, the public campaign 'Don't make it too easy' ran until March 1, 2018, which makes people aware of preventive measures that they can take to prevent domestic burglary. Measures such as renovating locks or installing good outdoor lighting play an important role in prevention.

We are not there yet
"We see that prevention really works, but we are not there yet," said Minister Dekker. The Minister still finds it important to encourage people to secure their homes better. And in the coming year, there will be additional effort for new initiatives in the field of neighbourhood prevention. "We can help each other enormously by stimulating neat initiatives such as WhatsApp groups and Facebook groups."

During the presentation, the Hornbach hardware store provided two installed doors and the minister was allowed to try out how easy it is to break through a piece of plastic. Attempts on the second door failed because a modern lock with automatic deadbolt was used on that one.

Between 2006 and 2012, the number of burglaries in the Netherlands rose from 70,000 to 92,000 per year. And that was good enough reason to set up the National Intruder Prevention Weeks Foundation. The foundation now focuses mainly on consumer awareness. During the last period, thanks to an information campaign, 70,000 door lock locks were replaced by units with anti-core pulling cylinders. When asked whether it was perhaps a good idea to use the low VAT rate for security materials, the minister unfortunately answered in the negative.