Do you feel like your business premises is vulnerable to burglary and theft? Are you living in one of Auckland’s crime hotspots? If so, it could be time to revise your security options, including adding steel security doors. Let’s explore the situation.
Where are the crime hotspots in Auckland?
Studies show that from July 2014 – December 2016, the Central West CBD area of Auckland was the hardest hit regarding crime. Are your business premises located here? If so, perhaps, you were one of the nearly 6000 recorded incidents during this period? However, things weren’t a great deal better for residents and business owners in the Central East CBD where there were over 5000 recorded crimes.
Not surprisingly, crime in the CBD is rife, with Auckland’s CBD being the biggest in the entire country and therefore the busiest too. The transient nature of visitors and tourists to the CBD as well as being home to two universities, other learning institutes and licensed hotels and a casino means that there is a never a quiet moment. For the police, of course, this adds to the challenge of keeping on top of numerous incidents that happen throughout the day and night and often at the same time.
The sheer demand for police attendance across the city makes it difficult for them to adequately cover all incidents in a short space of time, meaning that while they deal with car theft or aggravated burglary, your business premises could be left vulnerable to crime and the perpetrators able to escape.
What can you do to prevent crime in an Auckland hotspot?
With all crime comes a risk to personal safety. In all cases, you must think of the safety of your staff members and yourself first. However, in an ideal world, you will never find yourself in a position where you must step back and let a crime take place to save lives. Instead, you want your business to have an impenetrable façade with visible security methods in place that work as a deterrent to any possible criminal attacks. But, how do you do this? Here are our Top Ten security tips:
- Install solid steel security doors to the outside of your business premises (both front and back).
- Install steel gates and security doors to any entrances/exits with added locks and security code entrance
- Invest in security cameras
- Advertise the fact that you have security cameras
- Educate all staff members about being vigilant, especially when it comes to being followed onto the work premises
- Keep on top of local crime rates. If there’s a spate of robberies, make sure your security is in good shape
- Use 24 hours security surveillance devices
- Remove all valuables from your property at night and use signage to indicate this action
- Ensure that any safe is out of visible sight and is firmly attached to the ground
- Keep the number of spare keys and people with access to the building to a minimum to avoid them falling into the ‘wrong hands’
Keeping track of crime in Auckland
It makes sense to know what criminal activity is taking place in your local area. For example, there is often a spate of crimes by the same perpetrators that follow a pattern. Being aware of this type of activity gives you the opportunity to install further security measures such as solid steel doors, gates or cameras.
To help, the New Zealand police share crime statistics on their website http://www.police.govt.nz/crime-snapshot allowing viewers to see where and what crime is taking place in and around the country. By zooming in on the map, you can pinpoint your location and see how local crime could affect you and your business.
Finally, while this reading might seem all doom and gloom, the good news is that crime levels in Auckland’s CBD in 2018 are in slight decline. Although far from perfect, the simple fact that people are becoming more aware and security conscious is part of this reason.
Our message is simple. Don’t become one of the statistics. Instead, actively secure your business to prevent crime and to deter burglars and thieves. Please get in touch to discuss ways to prevent crime and burglary in your workplace.