Even though the number of holiday home burglaries has begun to decrease this year, come spring, an unpleasant surprise will still await many holiday home owners: someone has forced entry into the house, made a mess and stolen property.
In 2017, the police recorded a total of 1,512 thefts or attempted thefts in holiday homes. At the end of September last year, the number was 1,238 but at the same time this year, the figure is much lower, 905, which is almost 27 per cent less. Naturally, Inland and Eastern Finland see the highest number of break-ins into holiday homes, as most of them are situated in these regions.
According to Chief Superintendent Jyrki Aho of the National Police Board, it is difficult to pinpoint a clear reason for the decline. Both Finnish and foreign criminals commit holiday home burglaries.
“A quick look at the suspects shows that the vast majority of them are of domestic origin. The number of foreigners is lower now, although their number rises steadily if you investigate the background of suspects in household burglaries,” says Jyrki Aho.
Many burglars targeting holiday homes have a varied criminal background, including burglaries into households, worksites and business premises, plus narcotics offences. Most of these offenders are professional and recurrent criminals, who move from one place to another.
According to Aho, the police believe that preventive communication has been fruitful and better protection of holiday homes has succeeded in combating thefts.
Methods to combat holiday home burglaries
The police still reminds about the recommended methods of protecting holiday homes from thieves.
- Take all valuables away. Never leave anything of value, no alcohol or weapons in the cottage.
- Leave the curtains open. This way, the thief sees that there is nothing worth stealing inside.
- Equip the holiday home with burglar alarms and CCTV, alongside signs to indicate that the property is protected this way.
- Agree with other holiday home owners and permanent residents of the area that everyone should look out for any dubious people moving in the neighbourhood and notify the police whenever necessary. The identifying information and car registration numbers of such people should be recorded. You can also politely ask unknown passers-by what they are looking for, maybe a certain location?When the criminals notice that they have been detected, they usually go away.
It is a good idea to photograph all property left in the holiday home and record unique identifiers. This makes police work easier in cases of theft.
Watch the Police Tube tip video on the police website for further instruction (In Finnish)
