Report suggests surge in burglaries at retail and other commercial premises
A new study has found that police forces across the UK have been forced to carry out extra night patrols in empty town centres as burglars target shops and commercial premises during the coronavirus lockdown.
After collating data from police reports, news items and its own customer feedback, property security specialist VPS UK found there was a sudden rise in burglaries and attempted thefts last week in the Manchester, Merseyside, Gwent and Cleveland areas.
David Wormald, key account director for hospitality and retail at VPS, said: “It’s no surprise that when whole city centres are deserted, that opportunistic thieves will take their chances, especially with an already stretched police service. And because so many people are staying at home now, there’s even fewer chances that an attempted burglary on a commercial site will be spotted and reported.”
Photo by Georgia Hawkins
