There were 465,808 burglaries reported between March 2014 and March 2015, which equates to an average of 1276 burglaries every day and one every 68 seconds.
The analysis, by home security experts The Safe Shop, uncovers the shocking crime statistics of 45 police constabularies, as well as their worryingly low clearance rates. 69% of all burglary cases are closed without any suspect identified, meaning the majority of victims never know who the perpetrator is.
Of all the constabularies analysed, Leeds was one of the worst affected cities with one burglary reported every 52 minutes and 55 seconds. That accounts to 10,215 burglaries in a year. Neighbouring Sheffield and Bradford also fared badly, with the latter showing 6824 burglaries reported.
Birmingham was another city highly ranked close behind Leeds with one reported every 56 minutes and 39 seconds. Even more worrying was the police’s clearance rate, which stands at 83.74%, meaning the vast majority of people never know who burgled their house.
A College of Policing study however found that these low clearance rates may be due to increasing police time being spent on public protection work.
Steven White, head of the Police Federation, commented earlier this year:
“83 per cent of calls to forces do not concern incidents of crime [which] calls into question government claims that the police should just be measured on efforts to cut crime. Policing pubs and clubs; house-to-house inquiries and taking statements are just some of the key areas of police work not covered in crime statistics.”
Anthony Neary, security expert at The Safe Shop, commented:
“There are an astounding number of burglaries in the UK every year. Even though crime numbers in general are slightly down, these statistics highlight how important it is for us to be vigilant about our home security. That means locking your house and keeping your valuables hidden and safe when you’re not at home.”
