There is good news and bad news when it comes to the burglary statistics for Kent in 2014. The Police UK website shows that in the quarter to March 2014 burglary figures were down over the same period for 2013, and obviously the Police are keen to emphasise this point.

Burglary Statistics for Kent 2014

However, the bad news is that the figures for the quarter ended March 2013 showed a considerable increase on the same quarters in 2012 and 2011. The even worse news is that, despite a fall from last year, the March 2014 figures are still considerably higher than either 2011 or 2012. Yes, the figures have improved, but you are still worse off than two and three years ago.

This post shows that the figures for September 2013 were higher than twelve months previously, both for Kent overall and for Maidstone.

Figures show that Kent is the tenth highest burgled area in the country, falling into the bracket of 5,000 to 10,000 burglaries during the year.

In South Yorkshire, which was top of the list, no less than 1.19% of the population was affected by burglary. However, Kent was not all that far behind at 0.85%.

Of course, this doesn’t sound a lot – until it happens to you.

The long term emotional effects of burglary

People who have suffered burglary report a variety of emotions, including a feeling of being violated, because someone has been in what they thought was a place of safety - their own home. If you are not safe in your own home, where are you safe?

Other emotions include anger, fear, sadness, and helplessness. Experts say that the best thing is to let these emotions run their course, because there is little you can do about it.

You may be angry at not only the burglar himself, but also the police, the population as a whole (on the basis of “what’s wrong with everyone?”) and above all yourself for simply not taking sufficient precautions to protect your home when you are not there.

Then there is the fear that, if the burglar has broken in once, he might come back and do it again. There is sadness at the loss of valuables which, despite being insured, may be irreplaceable – and, worse, have sentimental value such as jewellery that might have belonged to a departed loved one. Some people are so traumatised that they put their home on the market.

What can homeowners do to reduce the burglary statistics for Kent?

The answer, of course, is to take all possible security measures such as installing an alarm system and perhaps CCTV and security lighting beforehand. It is an unfortunate fact that many people do not consider security precautions until after they have been burgled which is a classic case of shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted. As with many things, it is far better to be safe than sorry.

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