Did you know Crime is seasonal?

There have been many studies regards to the seasonality of crime and simply put, yes it is linked to the time of year. Back in the 1800’s some academics started to see a correlation between types of crime and the months in which they took place. It may be that weather has a strong part to play, and that’s perhaps why we see violent crimes are more prolific in the hotter months, and property crimes are more prevalent in the winter months. Or is burglary just more attractive when there’s Christmas presents already nicely wrapped for the thief’s?  The swing in variation reported between violent and property crimes is as high as 12%!
 
Whatever the answer we ask all our customers to take extra care of their property at this time of year. Gifts can of course be replaced, but heirlooms and things with sentimental value are those items that hurt the most when lost. And it’s not always the value of items stolen which are the real cost of an insurance claim, as the physical damage done by the intruder can be much more expensive. We at AIC often see claims where the items stolen are a mere few hundred pounds, but the replacement door and frame can be thousands. And there’s worse, when criminals decide to cover their tracks with a fire. The trauma of any burglary is bad enough so we’re very mindful to ensure the insurance claim that follows should be as painless as possible, liaising with the policyholder throughout to make sure they have all the support needed.      
 
When did you last review your household insurance, to make sure it was up to date with the correct levels of cover, and just as importantly not costing you too much? Left unchecked, we sometimes see cover requested is half the value it should be, which causes all sorts of problems in a claim, so we recommend taking time out to review this. Our friendly staff are always happy to help you go through this process, advising how best to work out your sums insured and what security might help prevent the worst from happening. And if you’re not already insured with ourselves then definitely ask us for a quote as we love saving clients’ money whenever we can.
 
Lastly, crime doesn’t always pay, we read recently about a burglar who broke into a car, and the dash cam picked out the tattoo on the back of the thief’s neck, which was his name and date of birth!! The arrest couldn’t of been much easier. 
 
Keep vigilant, stay safe, and have a very Merry Christmas.
Yours sincerely, Danielle Maurer 
Household Manager