The Tribune

By EARYEL BOWLEG

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

SECURITY companies in New Providence are urging homeowners to invest in alarm systems as a first line of defence against criminals in view of concerns over a perceived increase in home invasions.

With reports of armed robberies, burglaries and recently a break-in at former Governor General Sir Arthur Foulkes' home, it appears there is a need now for the residential security feature.

Kostedde Williams, Managing Director at Pro-Tech Security and Alarms Services, told The Tribune that he'd seen a steady increase over the years.

“In 2019, (it) went up about eight percent, which was a steady increase versus 2018,” Mr Williams said. “(In) 2020 the first few months, we’ve already surpassed our totals for last year January and even this month already we will surpass our totals for last year February. So, more people are engaging in purchasing alarm systems.”

However, another security firm – Sure Alarm Systems – said it experienced a decline since 2015.

The company’s Office Manager Candy Weatherford, attributed the decrease for alarm systems to the rollout of Value Added Tax (VAT) in 2015 as it “took a huge bite out of people spending money on alarms”.

“I think coming into it everyone was afraid of the impact it would make, you know, on their bottom line so you saw the decrease. So I’d say from 2015, we’ve seen a decrease.”

“They’re making wiser choices with their money and how they’re spending it and we are seeing an increase now in alarm installations and crime has become, you know, gotten worse so that has played a factor in the increase.”

Ms Weatherford emphasised that an alarm does not ensure that a break-in will not occur but is a deterrent and a warning for people. She encouraged consumers to shop wisely when buying alarm systems as some companies sell “Chinese knock-offs” with the parts which are hard to find and only available where the device was purchased. She also warned about security companies with hidden fees and not having set prices up front.

Another measure Ms Weatherford suggested was purchasing outdoor lights – energy saving LED or motion sensitive – so that neighbours can see if an intruder is at the door.

Winston Sweeting, a locksmith at Harding Security, advised installing cameras, home alarm systems, strong locks, gates, and fences as the first line of defence against robbers.

He said: “Adding these things or increasing the level of security on these things usually stops them at step one, which is the deterrent. If you have somebody that could see that and is still willing try then (your) camera system should be able to see. You’d be able to see them from afar and monitor them whether you’re at work or home – anywhere once you’re on your phone you could see it happening in real-time.”

While the cost of an alarm maybe a turn-off, Mr Williams underpinned the value of investing in a security system.

“When we build a home, you know, pretty much that’s one of the single greatest investments,” he explained. “We store our family and valuables in there and I think just like a bank - banks secure their money because they know that's valuable. So, they do all the security measures that is needed to protect it and I think we should do the same thing for our homes. We should look at it as a very valuable place even though it has a price and it could be costly. To go through these dramatic events that could happen and what we’re reading in the papers is even a whole lot more costly.”

Last month Police Commissioner Anthony Ferguson, during his 2019 crime statistics, said there had been 113 reports of burglary and 684 cases of housebreaking.

As for shopbreaking incidents, there were 495 and 283 reports of stolen vehicles.