• Houses across the UK are left empty an equivalent of 51 days per year
• Over seven million Brits leave their homes unprotected
• Belfast has 64 burglaries per 1,000 households – the highest of any UK city
• Just one in seven lock away their presents in the lead up to Christmas
   

New research from Churchill Home Insurance1 reveals that British householders leave their homes unoccupied for 51 days each year, working out as 3 hours per day. The ‘loneliest homes’ are in Sheffield, where households leave their homes empty for 60 days throughout the year, followed by London, at 58 days unoccupied each year.

Homeowners in Plymouth leave their houses empty for the least amount of time, with their homes being unoccupied for just 36 days throughout each year, followed by those in Norwich, who leave their homes empty for just 41 days each year. The move away from traditional 9-5 office working and the need for flexible working arrangements means homes in some cities are left unoccupied for less time than others.

The research also shows the laissez faire attitude towards security measures throughout the UK, as millions of households are not securing their homes in the run up to Christmas, leaving them vulnerable to burglars. More than seven million2 UK adults admit they have no security features to protect their home; whether that‘s alarms, window locks or deadlocks3.

Analysis of UK Crime Stats4 reveals that Belfast has the highest rate of burglaries in the UK (64 per 1,000 households). It is, therefore, unsurprising that they report the most use of safety measures in their homes, with 93 per cent claiming to have some sort of device. The other cities with the highest burglary rates per 1,000 households are Nottingham (60 per 1,000), Manchester (60 per 1,000), Newcastle (57 per 1,000) and Cardiff (50 per 1,000).

Edinburgh, which has the lowest rate of security measures, has the fewest burglaries (17 per 1,000), followed by Plymouth (20 per 1,000). Those living in London are security conscious, with 87 per cent having some kind of burglary prevention measure in their homes and enjoy a spot in the bottom three of burglaries per household (21 per 1,000).
 

Table one:  Hours a house is empty in a day in UK cities

Source: Churchill Home Insurance 2016

Interestingly, flats are more frequently left empty than houses according to the research.  People who rent or own houses leave them unoccupied 49 and 42 days throughout each year respectively. This figure climbs to 74 days a year for those who rent a flat, and 69 days a year for flat owners.

Dr Claire Nee, Psychologist at the University of Portsmouth said: “We’re busier than ever with work and other commitments, especially at this festive time of year so it’s not surprising that our homes are empty for part of the day. The key is to make sure that we leave our properties safely locked up so that we can go about our days without worrying about a break-in.”

With the holiday season almost upon us, only 14 per cent of respondents lock away their presents in the run-up to Christmas. Other than keeping the gifts from prying eyes, this can also prevent temptation for burglars who might see the stack of gifts through a window. Over a quarter of people in the UK (28 per cent) leave gifts under the tree before the 25th, where they could potentially be visible to people outside of the home.

Ownership seems to have an impact on security measures, as those who own their house or flat are more likely (91 and 87 per cent) to have burglar deterrents on their property than those who rent (80 per cent of those who rent a house and 70 per cent for those who rent a flat).

Among those who have taken measures to protect their properties, the most common security features are window locks (65 per cent), deadbolts/other secondary locks on front doors (39 per cent), deadbolts/other secondary locks on all ground-floor doors (31 per cent) and burglar alarms (27 per cent).

Martin Scott, head of Churchill home insurance said: “Protecting your home is essential all year round, but the longer and darker nights can provide cover for a home intrusion. Unfortunately, Christmas is a prime time for burglars as they know properties are left unoccupied and there are more high value items in the home than usual. With so much going on, home security can be easily forgotten but we urge people to stay vigilant and protect themselves and their properties this Christmas.”

“Simple measures like double locking doors and windows, setting the security alarm whenever the property is empty, making the home look occupied and keeping valuables out of sight can make a big difference and ensure it’s not the burglars who are having a Merry Christmas!”

Churchill Home Insurance offers a 24/7 burglary response to its customers which means, day or night, Churchill’s burglary response team is available to make the property secure after it has been broken into5. Following a break in, Churchill will send an engineer to replace all damaged locks with a British standard lock and temporarily secure damaged windows and doors.

-ENDS-

1 Research conducted by Opinium amongst a representative sample of 2,000 UK adults completed between 29 November - 1 December 2016. Unoccupied days per year refer to total number of days throughout the year, not consecutive days. 

2 Based on representative sample of UK adult population (51,339,000). 51,339,000 x 0.143 = 7,341,477

3 Participants in the research were asked to select from a range of security devices, including various locks, alarms and lights. They were presented with an option for ‘other’ devices where they could write in any burglar deterrent not on the list. Those referred to here as having no devices selected ‘none of the above’ including the ‘other’ write-in option.

4 Churchill analysis of UK Crime Stats burglary data for the period October 2015 to September 2016, broken down by postcode area. Burglary figures for Edinburgh and Glasgow are estimates based on the UK average proportion of burglaries out of all crimes due to lack of published data for Scotland.

5 Churchill’s 24/7 burglary response ensures that day or night an engineer will be available to temporarily secure damaged windows and doors. Excludes Highlands and Islands. Policy and Cover limits apply. Underwritten by UK Insurance Ltd. 

For further information please contact:

Claire Foster 
Churchill PR Manager
01651831672 
07525665504

[email protected]

Churchill

Founded in 1989, Churchill is now one of the UK's leading providers of general insurance, offering car, home, travel and pet insurance cover over the phone or on-line.

Churchill general insurance policies are underwritten by U K Insurance Limited, Registered office: The Wharf, Neville Street, Leeds LS1 4AZ. Registered in England and Wales No 1179980. U K Insurance Limited is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.  

Churchill and U K Insurance Limited are both part of Direct Line Insurance Group plc.  

Customers can find out more about Churchill products or get a quote by calling 0300 200300 or visiting www.churchill.com

University of Portsmouth

The University of Portsmouth has a strong reputation for teaching excellence and for staff and student satisfaction, alongside internationally excellent research strengths. Situated at the heart of a historic waterfront city, the University contributes significantly to economic regeneration in the city and the region, raising aspirations and encouraging future generations to benefit from higher education. It is ranked in the top 500 universities in the world in the most recent Times Higher Education World University Rankings published in 2015 and is one of the top ten modern universities in the UK, according to The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2016.
 

Dr Claire Nee, Reader in Forensic Psychology

Dr Nee is the Director of the International Centre for Research in Forensic Psychology, which brings together considerable expertise in detecting deception, child witnesses, investigative interviewing, offending behaviour, eye-witness memory and false memory syndrome with other external collaborators of world renowned reputation. Dr Nee's research focuses on the decision-making and emotions of the burglar leading up to the event and at the scene of the crime.  She uses a variety of methods including virtual reality simulations and eye-tracking.

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