English legal expert Sir Edward Coke once declared a ‘man’s home is his castle’. However, to a thief, it’s more of a treasure chest waiting to be plundered.
England and Wales’s burglary scourge sees crooks raiding properties once every two minutes, with some 253,912 places broken into in the past year.
Chillingly, there has seemingly been a rise in the number of masked gangs and tech-savvy crime groups ransacking homes, snatching luxury cars and jewellery.
Many of the thieves are caught on doorbell camera as they loot people’s properties – with some brazen burglars carrying out heists in the middle of the day.
Callous crooks even ransacked the home of a tragic toddler Bronson Battersby, two, and his father, Kenneth, 24 hours after the pair were tragically found dead inside. Kenneth died after a ‘cardiac event’ with helpless Bronson dying of dehydration after.
Thieves prized open the window of the Lincolnshire house before shamelessly snatching 60-year-old Kenneth’s wallet.
And the tactics used by some are growing increasingly more disturbing, with gangs disguising themselves as delivery drivers – before storming their victims’ homes.
Now, MailOnline has pieced together tips from police, security experts and even reformed crooks on how best to ‘burglar-proof’ your home – from using WD-40 to prickly bushes.
Burglars are becoming more brazen, with many caught ransacking homes on doorbell cameras. Pictured is one thief breaking into a home to steal a Mercedes
These three thugs burst into the property in Devonport, Devon, and repeatedly hit and kicked the homeowner and a friend, while two children were upstairs before stealing £12,500
Bronson Battersby with his father Kenneth; the pair were found dead after Kenneth tragically suffered a heart attack and died, leaving his two-year-old son to die of dehydration
What a reformed burglar says you can do
She was once a notorious burglar, responsible for raiding dozens of luxury properties during her reign of terror.
But after being jailed for 10 years following her crimewave, ex-thief Jennifer Gomez, 41, has turned her life around – and now offers advice to millions of people on TikTok.
The 41-year-old Florida native broke into more than 200 homes, stealing valuables from wealthy individuals that netted her around $7million (£5.09million).
The reformed crook, known as ‘Jen Jen Gomez, shared the ‘checklist’ she used to run through before she would raid a home – and the things that kept her away from certain properties.
‘Rich people always want to advertise their security,’ she said. ‘ADT stickers, surveillance signs, picket signs in the front yard. They want you to know. But for me, that was a good thing because what you’re telling me is you have things to protect, and now I know there’s an alarm system, so I’m gonna work around it.’
Gomez also said she preferred homes in cul-de-sacs or ones that backed up to quiet roads, allowing for a quick escape. Dense landscaping and privacy fences offered additional cover.
‘I would always try to find a home that was in a cul-de-sac so I wouldn’t get lost in there and/or a home that backed up to a street,’ she said. ‘Not like a main street, but just maybe like a two-way street that was right outside the neighborhood because sometimes, I would have to jump the fence if I had to get out of there quickly.’
How burglars get around security
Crooks can come up with innovative ways to avoid traditional security.
Some tech-savvy thieves are using Wi-Fi jammers to disrupt digital home security systems and doorbell cameras.
Organised gangs of criminals reportedly arrive as a team – complete with a lookout – before using the illegal jamming tech to effectively disrupt the connection cameras have to the home system.
Burglar Damon Keegan is among those to have been caught after using such tactics. He was jailed last year for running a hi-tech theft racket across Manchester, Cheshire and Derbyshire.
Keegan, of Hyde, used radio frequency jamming gadgets to disrupt Wi-Fi and phone signals, as well as disable doorbell cameras during his late-night raids.
The 31-year-old stole £350,000 worth of high-end cars before being caught by police. He was jailed for six years.
Other less sophisticated methods involves criminals cutting the power to the home.
These tactics have seen a growing prevalence in the United States but are thankfully relatively rare in the UK.
In Gomez’s case, she would use a disguise to dupe neighbours into thinking she was an innocent visitor to the home she was planning to plunder.
Jennifer Gomez was jailed for 10 years for a string of burglaries in America. She has now turned her life around and is giving tips on how people can avoid falling victim to crooks
Pictured is Gomez’s mugshot after she was caught by police for her string of raids in 2011
Burglar Damon Keegan is among those to have been caught after using the kit. He was jailed last year for running a hi-tech theft racket across Manchester, Cheshire and Derbyshire.
As part of the ploy, she would dress up in medical scrubs and posed as a worker from a dog ‘med spa’. If nobody answered the door, Gomez would knock on windows and call out names to make it seem like she was concerned from someone inside.
If still undetected, she’d use a glasscutter to make a discrete hole in the window before quietly sneaking in and ransacking bedrooms.
‘Your dog’s not gonna scare me,’ she added. ‘If I know there’s a dog, I always brought some kind of food.
‘I would bring steak, I would bring chicken, I’d have a sandwich in the car. If there’s a dog that does look a little scary, I’m giving it food, and I promise he’s fine.’
What advice do police give to protect your home?
Unsurprisingly, police forces have a plethora of guidance on what homeowners can do to shore up their security and defend their properties from burglars.
Here is a selection of just a few hints and tips offered by police forces nationwide:
Get yourself a prickly bush:
Police say thorny or prickly plants can act as a decent deterrent against would-be burglars trying to break into your home.
Plant them along boundaries and fence lines to act as natural barriers, officers say.
Police say thorny or prickly plants can act as a decent deterrent for would-be burglars seeking to break into your home (file image)
Lubricant like WD-40 can also be sprayed on windowsills to make it trickier for thieves to break in (file image)
Burglar Paul Howell was captured on CCTV being thwarted by a ‘Home Alone-style’ trap, featuring a bucket of water
Keep your home visible:
You’d think that it would be best to make a property less visible from the street, and to keep it hidden from prying eyes behind overgrown bushes, trees, high fences or walls.
However, in reality, officers say that all this serves to do is make it easier for a criminal to get close to a home unnoticed, and provide somewhere to hide while raiding it.
Use low fencing, around 3ft high, at the front of the home and taller fencing at the rear and sides
Use gravel on driveways or under windows:
It sounds simple, but officers say using gravel on driveways and under windows can help deter crooks seeking to remain stealthy as they break in.
By gravelling driveways or paths, people can hear visitors as they approach – which is something a burglar is keen to avoid.
After demanding to know where the victim’s money was, the thieves took around £12,500 in cash and a number of keys before fleeing the area last February
Curtis Smith, 22, and Altan Tezcan, 37, appeared at Plymouth Crown Court. Pictured: Curtis Smith
Curtis Smith, 22, and Altan Tezcan, 37, were sentenced to eight and a half years each after pleading guilty to aggravated burglary. Pictured: Altan Tezcan
Keep keys out of windows and doors
Some might say the advice appears obvious, but leaving keys in window locks and doors can provide criminals a prime opportunity to access your home.
Windows left open are one of the most common causes of burglary. Window opening restrictors allow homeowners to ventilate their home while preventing the window from being opened wide enough for someone to climb through.
Similarly sash stops can be fitted to limit the opening of sash windows.
What else have homeowners done to protect their homes?
A shrewd victim, targeted by a serial burglar took efforts to catch him themselves – by setting up a Home Alone-style booby trap to snare the crook.
Comical footage from the homeowner’s CCTV shows 56-year-old Paul Howell tip-toeing his way through the back garden of a Northumberland house after dark in in November last year.
Creeping around the side entrance of the Blyth home, he encountered a ‘trap’ laid by the property owner.
Tripping over a thin string of fishing wire, Howell knocked over a bucket of water which not only splashed his feet but also set off the garden’s sensor light.
A Blyth homeowner had left a bucket of water attached to a thin string of fishing wire in his back garden
Paul Howell, 56, was caught on camera tripping over a Home Alone style trap
A Northumbria Police mugshot of Paul Howell following his arrest
The whole fiasco was caught on CCTV, with the footage being used to help convict Howell – who was jailed three years and seven months in February after admitting to attempted burglary and stealing hundreds of pounds of items from another home.
What do the other experts say about keeping your home safe?
Home security experts have given a host of tips – and where to buy affordable home protection kit to deter any would-be criminal from breaking in.
Roland Ellison, editor of home renovation website The Eco Experts, said: The first tip we recommend for home security is getting a simple outdoor motion sensor light, especially since daylight hours will become shorter during winter.
Any motion at night will set the light off, deterring any intruders. The light might also alert you to any unwanted visitors outside when you are inside your home.
To take it a step further in protecting your home, we recommend purchasing a visible home security system. This can include a home alarm system and security cameras for the exterior of your house. Alarm systems range in price from around £500 to £1,000-plus depending on the type, how many sensors you install, and if the system is monitored or unmonitored.
If you invest in a monitored system, you’ll make a monthly payment to a company, which will receive an alert when your alarm goes off. The company will then call the police or someone else of your choosing. An unmonitored system will rely on you calling the police yourself.
If getting an all-in-one home security solution is too expensive, as it may be for some people, you can buy singular security cameras or a Ring-style doorbell. These will cost around £30 to £200 per camera.
Roland Ellison is editor of The Eco Experts
You could buy one camera for the front of your house. If your cars are parked on a driveway, you can get another camera for the driveway. This might be slightly trickier if your cars were parked on the street, as pointing a camera outside the boundary of your home will require you to comply with GDPR and Data Protection Act laws.
Anyone without a driveway could get a simple steering lock as they can be relatively low cost and are visible from outside the car.
As you mentioned two expensive vehicles, these cars might have more sophisticated keys that allow you to enter the car just from standing near it with the key.
If you have a keyless car, it is essential to make sure your keys are far away from your car when being stored at home, otherwise someone may be able to open it.
Yair Daren, managing director of Security Risk Specialists Ltd, said: As the proverb goes, prevention is better than cure, and this is the case with home security.
Burglars prefer not to encounter people and will use a variety of ways to avoid being noticed. They don’t want to be seen or heard by a neighbour or passerby because they can then potentially be exposed.
I have five tips for home owners looking to reduce risk of burglary.
First, keep the front visible. One might think that security would be improved by making a property less visible from the street, keeping it hidden from prying eyes behind overgrown bushes, trees, high fences or walls.
However in reality, all that serves to do is make it easier for a burglar to get closer to a home unnoticed, and provide somewhere for them to hide while carrying out a burglary or theft.
Yair Daren, managing director of Security Risk Specialists Ltd
Lower fences or hedges at the front of the house around one metre high are preferable to high fences, as they allow for a clear view over the top and don’t provide cover for anyone wishing to hide.
At the rear and sides, taller fencing is recommended to prevent easy access. Gravel driveways and paths can make sure anyone approaching will be heard before they reach the house itself.
Next, consider an accredited burglar alarm system with audible alarm boxes mounted high at the front and rear of your home.
Two visible audible alarm boxes are better than one. Mount them at the front and rear of your home high up to resist tampering and to indicate the house is alarmed, which can act as a deterrent.
Third, using well-defined boundaries as a basis CCTV can be a valuable tool. However, it doesn’t prevent a crime from being committed and it does have its limitations.
CCTV linked to a smartphone will alert you to someone crossing your boundary and can be connected to a tannoy system which can allow you to make a security announcement and ward off trespassers.
CCTV is no substitute for good quality physical security such as secure doors and windows, so always make sure that you don’t remove your window restrictors even on hot days.
An analysis of crime data showed that both violent and property crime were lower in areas with improved street lighting compared to areas without.
This is good news for those who benefit from a street lamp right outside their house, but for the rest of us installing flood lighting around the property, including movement triggered lighting, can form another layer of deterrence.
Experts have given their advice on how to combat burglars and protect your home (file image)
Finally, don’t be flashy if you can help it. In the context of security, a Skoda is better than a Land Rover.
Vehicle theft from driveways has become an epidemic in many parts of Britain. If you decide to purchase an expensive vehicle it is better to have it parked inside a closed garage rather than somewhere visible.
Jewellery, watches, cash or other high-value items should be stored in a graded safe, ideally well hidden and insured, or alternatively, they can be stored in a commercial safety deposit box.
Rebecca Edwards, managing director home security reviews website SafeWise, said: Many burglars will skip a home protected by a security system. These systems typically include door and window sensors, motion detectors, a siren, and security cameras.
I recommend adding 24/7 professional monitoring so you have a direct line to help if something happens. This is especially important if you’re away from home – whether on holiday or out for dinner, it means someone is always watching your property.
Expect to pay between £300 and £1,500 for the equipment, depending on the complexity and number of devices, plus a monthly monitoring fee ranging from £10 to £50.
Rebecca Edwards is managing director of SafeWise
If you want to improve security without a full alarm system, a security camera is your best bet—especially for monitoring your driveway and any entrances to your home.
Cameras with night vision, motion detection, and two-way audio can deter potential burglars and provide valuable evidence in case of an incident. I especially like cameras that come with deterrent features like flashing lights, whistles, or pre-recorded messages to shoo crooks away.
A good quality camera starts at around £50, but more advanced systems with multiple cameras and features can cost upwards of £500.
A driveway alarm alerts you when someone approaches and can help you protect your cars. If you want a more extreme deterrent, you can install retractable bollards to physically block access to your driveway when you’re not at home, making it much harder for thieves to drive away with your cars.
Driveway alarms are generally affordable, ranging from £30 to £200, while retractable bollards can be more expensive, costing between £250 and £1,000 per bollard.
