19 December 2016
 Categories: , Blog

According to official Australian figures, unlawful entry of a structure with the intent to commit an offence is a crime which affects well over 200,000 victims in a typical year. Although the majority of these offences, which includes things like burglary as well as breaking and entering, take place in dwellings, a large proportion of them are concerned with retail units and other business premises.

Because most businesses are not operating overnight, it is after you have locked up that your premises become most susceptible to unlawful entry. There are some measures which are basic and that everyone should be taking, such as fitting an alarm and ensuring that doors and windows are locked systematically. What else should you be doing to avoid potential problems?

Improve Your Lighting

It is a well-known fact that lighting an area does not necessarily reduce property crime overall, but it can help to move it elsewhere. If your business premises is regarded by burglars as being hidden by a veil of darkness, then you are much more likely to fall victim to their illegal activities. Security lighting comes in all shapes and sizes and it need not cost the earth in terms of energy consumption either. Opt for external LED light fittings with tamper-proof housings that make them difficult to switch off.

Investigate Mobile Patrols

Hiring a security guard to look after your business overnight is an expensive option and beyond the means of many smaller enterprises. However, you can go for a lower cost option by opting for a mobile patrol service. Popular in urban centres, you share the cost of security personnel with other businesses that subscribe to the service. If the would-be burglars don't know when the patrol will arrive, they are much more likely to give your building a miss and move on to somewhere that is less troublesome.

Make Access Harder

There are all sorts of ways that make it more difficult for unwarranted access to be made into your business premises. Adding additional locks at the foot of doors is a good way of preventing them from being kicked in. Shutters over windows can prevent them from being smashed in order to gain access. Furthermore, security doors offer the level of protection for doorways and also mean that anyone has a key to the main door for use during the day cannot make their way in at night when you are not there.