I have never received so many orders from insurance companies following the numerous burglaries in our region since the opening of the office. And the numbers are still rising since the beginning of December. The vacation period between Christmas and New Year's Day is a good time to buy gifts and is a time for opportunistic neighbors or other well-informed people to steal.
The typology of burglars generally falls into three categories: professionals, amateurs and opportunists, in other words "local delinquency, from neighboring departments or from far away", according to the gendarmes interviewed by La Nouvelle République.
Thieves equip themselves more or less efficiently to break in as soon as possible and operate alone or in an organized gang.
In most cases, in your absence, they would go through the front door if the resistance time is less than 10 minutes.
However, we must also note thefts in your presence while you sleep at night, with or without breaking and entering when you forget to lock your doors and windows.
Unfortunately, the simple security cylinder can easily be picked, drilled or ripped if it is not equipped with safeguards against these processes.
Numerous videos on the Internet demonstrate the techniques and tools used: a pair of pliers, a "nightingale" or a small rod with curved edges, allow to lower the pins and unlock the interior twist allowing the bolt to retract, so the door opens by a simple mechanical movement.
The CNPP, national center of prevention and protection, certifies several types of cylinders (one star two stars three stars) according to the resistance time for each type of cylinder 5, 10, 15 minutes. Numerous laboratory studies allow us to improve the research and development of all locking systems, including safes.
It is therefore preferable to check the locking system of the front door and to improve it by installing additional interior locks or certified multipoint locks.
Simply put, you must not forget to lock your doors, windows and shutters during any absence, even a short one! The neighbor or the relative who comes to feed the cat can forget to close this or that exit correctly.
The multi-risk home insurance contract sometimes mentions the obligation to use all means of closing during the night (and specifies the time slot, for example between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.) so that if the burglary occurs at your home during the night and you have not closed your window because of the heat of August, the exclusion of guarantee could apply...ditto for a certain period of unoccupied or uninhabited generating new obligations such as storing your jewelry or precious objects in a safe or locked cabinet. Here again, it is preferable not to leave the key to the safe nearby!
Also, some contracts specify the number of anchor points required on the front door, but it turns out that many times the integrated locking system is only equipped with "lift points" whose main function is simply to hold the sash and is not equipped with bolts entering the fixed frame.
In summary, theft prevention begins with the installation of locks that comply with the requirements of the contract and if possible certified by the CNPP (i.e. bearing one, two or three stars) for optimal protection.
