Coronavirus pushes vehicle theft to 10-year low - the statistics for Falmouth
By Joseph Macey
16th Sep 2021 | Local News
Vehicle theft dropped to a 10-year low during the height of spring's lockdown according to new figures from UK CrimeStats, with figures also being revealed for Truro and Falmouth constituency.
UK wide, the year began with reported vehicle thefts hitting 38,800 in January, but this nearly halved to 21,560 thefts in April and 21,550 in May.
While June (23,260) and July (25,890) recorded a slight rise in vehicle theft, the figures remain firmly below last year's monthly average of 33,370.
The data, which goes back to December 2010, has not recorded a lower monthly number of vehicle thefts than July 2020.
Looking more locally, Devon & Cornwall Police had the 16th lowest number of thefts in residential areas from or of vehicles out of 41 forces in England, Wales and NI between August 19th – July 20th.
Devon & Cornwall Police had the 6th lowest vehicle crime rates for the same number of forces and dates.
In Truro and Falmouth, the number of reported thefts from or of a vehicle were at their highest in March of this year (17) and hit their lowest in June (9) and July (10).
The research presented by UK CrimeStats – a leading crime data research and analysis platform – covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland and gathers data based on reported crimes of over 40 police forces. Vehicle theft refers to taking items from a vehicle or stealing the vehicle.
Responding to the new data, Greg Wilson, founder of Quotezone, said:
"It's not surprising that the rate of vehicle crime fell in April and May, given lockdown measures and the reduced number of cars on the road.
"However, the scale of the fall in vehicle theft was incredibly dramatic, perhaps suggesting that some of that community spirit we witnessed with the 'clap for carers' initiative has helped foster a sense of community-mindedness more broadly. Whatever the cause let's hope this particular change is here to stay.
"For those people who still find themselves victims of car crime, it is important to know what to do when you arrive at the scene. Make sure to call the police and your insurers as quickly as possible, don't touch anything at the scene and take photos if you can – many households now have CCTV which can be incredibly useful if your car is stolen from home.
"With lockdown measures still in place your car may be spending more time at home than ever before so make sure callers to your house have ID – legitimate callers won't mind you double-checking. Keep valuables out of sight and if you have an outside light it's helpful if it's on a motion sensor."
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