Burglar alarm/security systems

The town where we live now used to be a hotspot for burglaries when we lived here in the 90s.
We had 2 house burglaries, 2 car thefts and once I had my bag snatched on the street.
Then someone set up a business installing burglar alarms (not sure what type) and things calmed down.
The Police also claimed to have arrested a young man who was resposible for most of the burglaries.
As MOnica says, potential burglars tend to be put off when they see a burglar alarm on the outside of a house.
The best story about those days was a lady who heard noise in her front room. she peeped inside and a man was rummaging through her posessions. She slammed the door of the room and hung onto the handleand screamed "the police are coming". And he was arrested.

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I prefer CCTV to alarms which frighten me to death when they go off and I'm on my own

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If you don't want a full on alarm system why not get those alarms which are fixed to individual windows and doors - that way animals can be left to roam the house!

Our alarm went off recently whilst we were far from home - I get a recorded message on my mobile. It was an awful feeling (we have been burgled 3 times already) but luckily my daughter lives near us and was able to go to the house and let us know that all was ok. She said that a neighbour was already outside to see what was going on and a passing police car was there as well - so people don't ignore alarms going off!. BTW the alarm had a fault on it and that has now been fixed.

We do not set our alarm at night because the system makes a fairly loud peep, peep, peep, noise when you turn it on and off and the alarm sounder was placed on the landing immediately beside our bedroom door. So if anyone gets up in the night and goes downstairs for any reason they wake everyone else up as well.

must tell her about that , seems a better option !

Ah, I must admit we never set ours at night, aggie, for the same reason. We had that heart attack moment once only and wouldn't risk it again! We do have a panic button in the bedroom though, that would set the alarm off if we press it.

our neighbour put her shoulder out pushing the sideboard against the front door , she has a full alarm system put in by her son , but says she would have a heart attack is it went off , so never sets it just barricades herself in every night

As I said, OldMeg, the police know about ours, have made use of it a couple of times, but have never said it`s not legal in any way. One camera covers our back yard, another the roof of the garage, then at the front, one focuses on the ground in front of our door, the other one points down the bank towards the main road, and that`s the one that`s been the most use to the police and to one of our neighbours when her car was damaged.

This is the law governing Domestic CCTV on your property

Kitty, when our son put our cameras up, one of my daughters said just that, about having to make it plain that the cameras are there, but the police have been a few times to look at what`s on there, and said nothing about it. Plus they are fairly obvious anyway.

I think they're worth it. We had three opportunistic break-ins in quick succession before we had our alarm fitted about 25 years ago (we've a back door that's hidden away and ripe for the kicking in). Very little was taken, but it's all the hassle of the insurance claim, new door, etc. Since the alarm, not a thing. I always set it, even if just going out for half an hour. DH and I regularly have the conversation about "did you put the cat out of the front room?" "I don't think so, did you?" "did you lock the hall door?" (to keep said cat out), "yes, I'm pretty sure I did, oh, but maybe she sneaked back in when I went back for my bag", but actually it's an automatic routine now and - touch wood - it hasn't gone off for years.

I’ve set our alarm off twice by accident and it’s pretty loud, no one took a blind bit of notice ??

Years ago a friend woke up to find a burglar in her bedroom going through her handbag trying to find her car keys. She took her handbag up to bed with her to keep it safe if anyone broke in. My friend was the head of a girls school and nothing phased her so she got out of bed and gave the burglar a good tongue lashing!!

I understood that you had to put a warning outside if you had CCTV (!!) and that just encouraged the perpetrators to put their hoods up and turn their back to the cameras.

We were burgled whilst asleep...pretty scary to think someone has been in your home whilst your asleep...my elder daughter (maybe around 15/16 at the time) hered someone downstairs but thought it was dh as he often got up during the night to go downstairs for ciggy..

Justalaugh depending on the system they start sounding when someone tries to open a window (that is how it worked for us). The noise scares the burglar away because he has drawn attention to his presence and is worried that the neighbours will come out to see what is happening (at least, that is our experience). If he does ignore that, the noise in the house is so loud and piercing and uncomfortable to listen to, apart from stopping one thinking that the burglar is unable to concentrate on what to take and leaves. Our alarm has seen off two attempts at break-ins.

Yes, if burglars are determined to get in they will, but that is usually only when they know the house contains something worth all the planning and technical expertise needed to overcome any alarms and I certainly do not have those kinds of possessions and I doubt if many on Gransnet do.

I can't quite see the point of burglar alarms - they simply let anyone know that someone has broken into the house (after the event).

We've got CCTV instead - 3 cameras - one at the front, one at the side, and one at the back of the house. I prefer them to an alarm, as the perpetrator will surely be caught on camera.

A person driving up our street was caught (long story but she was wanted by the police, and she was caught on our camera, which the police took stills of and used as evidence to prosecute her)

About 3 and a half years ago, we got up one morning to find that someone had cup a piece out of the glass in the back door, in the corner just above the keyhole. Luckily they only got through one pane of the double glazing, but it cost us £120 for new glass in the door. For Christmas that year our son bought us CCTV cameras, 2 at the front and 2 at the back of the house. We`ve had no further instances, but the police have been a couple of times to look at what we had recorded when crime has been committed round here. They also come in handy when we`re expecting someone to call or deliver things, as we don`t always hear the front door, and I like people watching on them as well!

Its the hassle really and the mess that our poor neighbours are going to come home to that would upset me. Their son and did have been round and done what they can but it will still be stressful.

oldmeg, they have cameras not just alarms - I miswrote. We had 5 children, 2 dogs and 3 cats to loath at one stage in a 3 storey house - it wore me out!

We have a very informal neighbourhood watch between our little group of neighbours but it obviously isn't working!!

We have been broken into 3 times and after the last time we had an alarm fitted. There are sensors in hall, downstairs rooms and landing. I know about the theory that if they want to get in they will but surely they won't stay long with an alarm blaring out - anyway it makes me feel happier about going out.
I put it on even if I am just popping to nearby shops!!

We have had burglar alarm systems for nearly 30 years in both our last two houses and they have foiled break-ins in both. It is just automatic to set the alarm, which is in the hall close to the front door, every time we leave the house

We are away a lot and it is a relief to go away without worry. We had two break-ins in houses we lived in previously, where we did not have an alarm, nothing valuable stolen because we didn't have anything particularly valuable to steal. But it is a hassle dealing with window repairs and valuations etc etc.