Focus Day

Property crime, and more specifically burglary, affects many European citizens. Luckily, burglaries are preventable and it does not have to be expensive! Research clearly shows the effectiveness of improved window and door locks or external lights that pop on when their sensors observe movement and internal lightning on a timer. These measures increase the risk of being caught and/or the effort that would be needed to enter a home successfully. These improved security measures prevented a great deal of crimes and eventually led to a genuine crime drop. The takeaway for crime preventers, though, is not to sit back and relax. On the contrary! Many people are still victim of burglary. That is why 23 European countries, united in the EUCPN (European Crime Prevention Network) and EMPACT, have joined forces to launch this initiative.

The prevention campaign to #StopDomesticBurglaries consists of a poster, a flyer, two short social media posts, a radio spot and a case movie. The case movie includes initiatives from the Member States and inspires the national partners to participate in this initiative. The EUCPN has also written the paper What works to prevent domestic burglaries?, to support European, national and local stakeholders by giving an overview of the initiatives which might, or not might work, to prevent domestic burglaries. This year the prevention campaign to #StopDomesticBurglaries consists of a video that explains citizens which measures are the most effective to prevent burglaries and provide the best value for money.

The 23 participating European countries in 2023 are Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Greece, Ireland, Iceland, Hungary, Spain, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, and Slovenia.

 Video What works to prevent domestic burglaries?

 The case movie