More security in health and home

In the last ten years the Dutch population have been making more and more provisions to prevent burglary, and bicycle and car theft. Compared with 1992 more homes have better locks, exterior lighting, window shutters and burglar alarm systems.

Measures against burglary

More than eight out of ten people have safety locks or bolts on the outside doors of their homes. Three quarters have exterior lighting, thirteen percent have door and window shutters, and nearly another thirteen have a guard dog. Nearly nine percent of houses have a burglar alarm system. On the other hand, six percent of the population aged 15 and older have taken no special measure to deter housebreakers.

Precautionary measures

In addition to these concrete measures, when people are away from home they also take extra precautionary measures nearly 82% ask their neighbours to keep an eye on things; over half of people who are going away for a time store valuables in a safe place and nearly half leave a light on. Thirteen percent give their key to someone to look after pets and plants while they are away. One in ten households inform the police if they go on holiday or are away from home for another reason.

Measures to prevent bicycle theft

Measures to prevent car and bicycle theft

Cycling is a very popular form of transport in the Netherlands, and seven out of every eight Dutch people aged fifteen or older have a bike. Six out of seven cyclists rely on a safety lock on their bike. The engraving of the owner’s postcode in the bike frame and a bicycle registration card are now less popular measures than ten years ago, although one third and one quarter of cyclists respectively make use of these provisions.

Car owners often use devices like a starter interrupt or a car alarm. One in five car owners have had one of these devices fitted in their cars.

Henk Hendriks