A distraction burglary can involve one, two or multiple thieves. Be warned, unscrupulous criminals can appear very plausible with their stories, so this type of crime can happen to anyone. Tennis star, Petra Kvitova, became a famous victim back in December 2016.
This blog post has advice on how to keep your home and family safe from this type of ruse!
It's often, but not always, a two pronged attack. Working in pairs, scumbag one distracts you, the homeowner, while the other gains entry to your home. They will use some kind of fabricated story to put you off guard and keep you occupied while scumbag two steals your children's Xbox or tablet. Typical stories include:
The story can be almost anything and the thieves will often dress up to look convincing - it doesn't just affect old people and the vulnerable, ANYONE can be tricked - as Petra Kvitova found out (see below).
Most callers to your home will be genuine visitors, obviously, but a determined criminal is ingenious. He will use all his years of scamming experience to steal from you. The Essex Police have a page dedicated to preventing these criminals, here is their advice:
You can do a lot more to make your home secure. A professional security company can help prevent you from becoming a victim like Petra Kvitova. Here are three ways Blake Fire & Security Systems can help to keep the scumbags out!
In blocks of flats and multi-occupancy houses door entry systems provide a first line of defence and let you buzz in the good guys and keep the bad ones at bay. These systems can include video so you can take a peek at your unexpected visitors as well as talking to them.
At larger properties automatic gates can act as your first line of defence. You have complete control over who you let onto your premises. A side benefit is that you will never forget to lock up after leaving because the gates do it for you!
Modern HD CCTV systems offer exceptional quality and allow you to vet who is outside your home before going to the door - you can even do it on your phone or tablet! A professional installation company will set your CCTV systems to optimise the security of your home.
A DIYer or unqualified supplier simply doesn't have the skills.
Thwarting a determined bogus caller can be dangerous. During the week before Christmas in 2016, a famous tennis star was seriously injured in an attack from a bogus caller.
Two-time Wimbledon winner, Petra Kvitova, was attacked at her home in Prostejov in the Czech Republic. The attacker tricked his way into the apartment block posing as a utilities man and attacked her. She suffered lacerations to her racquet hand while struggling with the intruder who was armed with a knife.
We don't want to overplay the risk of being attacked on your own doorstep by a bogus caller but it just goes to show that anyone of any age can be tricked by a convincing criminal.
It's wise to consider taking the necessary precautions!
For more insight into keeping your home and family safe this Christmas and the rest of the year, click here or tap the image below to take our 5 minute quiz. It's that fast to find out how safe your home really is!
