NCJ Number
79132
Date Published
Unknown
Length
37 pages
Annotation
The Dutch study compares the costs of preventive measures against business burglarization taken by the Hague police, the criminal justice system, and entrepreneurs to the curative costs of repairing damage caused by committed burglaries.
Abstract
The sample consists of 398 businesses that experienced burglaries between 1970 and 1974. Measures were taken by respondents in the period 1968 to 1977. Findings indicate that 12 percent of the businesses in the Hague were burglarized in 1977. The average damages per business were 283 guilders, while the average cost for technical prevention amounted to 552 guilders. A security service was used by 24 of the businesses, which added 2500 guilders to the cost. The total cost for preventive measures amounted to 12 times more than the damages from burglaries, and insurance alone was twice as much as the damages. Factors which increase risk of burglaries include the attractiveness of merchandise and the visibility of items to passers-by; the presence of potential delinquents in the district in question; and the various types of preventive measures taken. However, comparison of statistics over the whole period shows that the amount of damage costs dropped below the costs for preventive measures in 1974 when intensive preventive measures were implemented. This suggests that technical prevention measures probably do reduce the risk of burglary. More careful study of police records could confirm this observation. Graphs and tables are supplied.