It’s a strange, creepy feeling.

Chicken, how awful. How can people have no conscience about inconveniencing others, stealing, causing damage?
I know crime has always existed but the amount of serious crime certainly seems to has risen significantly over the last decade or so. I have to keep reminding myself that most people are decent. We get crime warnings of break-ins, car theft, etc, from our local police force via Facebook now. It certainly makes me mindful that it occurs close by and usually during the night.

How horrid, Chicken!

In reverse when living in Cheshire a friend went down to her front gate one morning. She found a bike has been dumped over her hedge She reported it to the police but no one claimed it. She rode that bike for years

Nannylovesshopping

sandelf

Depressing. We are on a town road (East Sussex) - well lit, everyone I've met is clean and polite, quite large front gardens - yet my nice Christmas door wreath was removed within a day or two - haven't replaced it - too expensive.

I’d be inclined to wander round the streets until I found it adorning the thief’s door, presuming as it was expensive, prob unusual, and steal it back/knock on said door, may I have my wreath back…… you thieving git……

Unless the door wreath is a one off, this could be very embarrassing if the neighbour had one, legitimately purchased, that was the same design.

Garden ornaments and sometimes newly planted trees ,shrubs and plants disappear overnight in my area .

Garden furniture theft happens quite a lot on our estate, how they manage to lift them over 6 feet high fences puzzles me as most have padlocked gates.
Some thieves are lacking in powers of observation, one stole two bikes from a porch of my neighbour opposite. My house has 4 CCTV cameras and he stood in direct line of one.
The next day police did a door to door check to see if anyone had seen anything, as it was 2 am they were not successful. We said we would check the CCTV, the policeman was thrilled as he hadn't realised we had cameras even though there is a notice in the front door window and a large yellow poster on the facia board 🙄

Sadly, that's the society we live in. I saw a programme about a poor town in the north of the UK. Some families didn't have enough money for basics, so the answer was to steal things and sell them on.

It must have been really awful for you to think that crime was happening so close to you.

About 20years ago the police turned up at 7 am to search the house because my husband was suspected of a crime. In the end, of course, he was totally innocent, but having the house searched our stuff looked through felt just like being burgled. Some of the things they had moved stayed in the wrong place for months because I just didn't want to touch them after strangers had been looking through them.

Basgetti

We lived up a track, half a mile from a B Road many years ago. Treated ourselves to new bicycles to enjoy the countryside. Miles from the village, we left them outside in our large, covered porch the night after we had bought them. They were gone in the morning. That was really, really uncomfortable.

A young neighbour had his bike stolen from the back garden. It was lifted over a 6ft fence. The insurance replacement took 6 weeks, but 24 hours later they broke their shed door, bike padlock and it was gone. It was clearly someone he knew.

We hear occasionally about vans being broken into, but it is often when tools have been left, so again someone who knows the victim. It does seem that they think insurance will pay - but then we all do.
Oddly, people still park half way onto the pavement, even though we have had a spate of thefts of catalytic converters and other engine parts, which are easier to get at from cars parked this way

Electric vehicle chargers have all had their cables cut off round our way. Disgusting.

We have panic buttons in our house and cameras all around. We subscribe to a private security company who will be here in 7 minutes.
We live out in the country and there have been some nasty burglaries round our village. I have no faith that the police would turn out for us.

I work in a GP surgery; thieves cut and stole the copper wires going to all the aircon units. Apparently, they do it on the wires next to the railway lines can't understand how they don't electrocute themselves

Who is buying that copper from the cables? They are the ones to go after.

In my previous life, my trade was a painter and decorator. We were painting a block of new builds. We went in one morning to find all the copper piping and electrical wiring ripped out of every house.

I'm so sorry that this has happened to you and your neighbours.
What a nuisance .
I don't know what the answer is .

Aely

Shame they didn't electrocute themselves.

Amen to that, Sister.

hulahoop

That's awful chicken they do it on railways frequently they don't think about people it's affecting .

My dd’s family were going to Barcelona by train in the October half term and their train from Paris to Spain was cancelled because of cable theft. They had to scramble for airline tickets because the next train wasn’t until three days later.

Madeleine45 - I was a victim of crime some time ago & presented the police with images from my CCTV system & the thief's name & address obtained from social media. The officer I dealt with actually rolled his eyes & looked to the heavens thinking he would actually have to take action. I never heard another thing from the police, so sadly I wouldn't put much faith in having a ring doorbell.

To add to my original post—— the generator and security guard are no longer needed as the cause of the original power loss has been identified. Not the broken underground cable originally suspected. The real reason is that someone in the area is seeking out electricity poles in secluded areas and setting fire to the bases where they’re connected to the underground cables. They suspect it may be a disgruntled ex employee! Really, you couldn’t make it up!!

sandelf

Depressing. We are on a town road (East Sussex) - well lit, everyone I've met is clean and polite, quite large front gardens - yet my nice Christmas door wreath was removed within a day or two - haven't replaced it - too expensive.

I’d be inclined to wander round the streets until I found it adorning the thief’s door, presuming as it was expensive, prob unusual, and steal it back/knock on said door, may I have my wreath back…… you thieving git……

Depressing. We are on a town road (East Sussex) - well lit, everyone I've met is clean and polite, quite large front gardens - yet my nice Christmas door wreath was removed within a day or two - haven't replaced it - too expensive.

We lived up a track, half a mile from a B Road many years ago. Treated ourselves to new bicycles to enjoy the countryside. Miles from the village, we left them outside in our large, covered porch the night after we had bought them. They were gone in the morning. That was really, really uncomfortable.

Good grief! What a dreadful thing to do!!

It certainly adds to the problems caused by burglars etc to feel that they have invaded your terretory. I am considering getting one of those doorbells with a camera. So far no problems with criminals as such, it is more that I can see who is there when my back is bad and then able to decide whether to go to the door or not. But I also think it will be useful to prove when delivery people actually came , as opposed to when they say they arrived!! Also would see where they have left parcels! I am home much of the day in general, but choose where possible to pick things up at shops, as I HATE waiting in for who knows how long for the elusive van to arrive. But it certainly makes you feel as though you have been kicked when you are down when something like that happens. Around here our neighbours are quite good at letting each other know if someone unusual is visiting and do watch out for dustbin men etc, and if they see them start to go off before getting my things from the shed as they are new binmen they will call them back etc. Probably as this is all peopleover 55 I think it is, there is usually people about at all times of the day and night, so we might not be seen as somewhere worth burgling - or just they know we wont have any major things worth pinching!

We have an underfunded police force. There is so much crime which is now accepted as part of life, shop lifting is rife in some places. Last night I happened to read a Guardian article about violent assaults on medical staff in health centres and hospital. These have escalated and the police don't attend.

Where I live on the edge of a Cotswold town, there is a steady trickle of people finding their cars broken into in the night and items stolen from porches and gardens.

I never thought I would feel grumpy as I got older but comparing the UK to even 30 years ago leaves me in despair.

We are experiencing a cyclone in far north Queensland at the moment. The news reported last night that some vandals (grubs) had stolen the cabling which provided electricity, internet, phone and the 000 service.

Apparently copper in the cables is easy to sell and worth a lot of money.