Why Smash and Grab Robberies are Effective
A smash and grab robbery is a crime where a criminal or a team of criminals breaks through the glass on a door or window, or breaks the door itself down, accesses a property, and steals items quickly. The goal of these crimes is to get inside a business, take as many valuables as possible, and leave before the police can arrive.
Criminals know that, even if the authorities are contacted as soon as a crime occurs, it will still take time for them to arrive. That’s why many smash and grab robberies are over in just a few minutes. Sometimes criminals are in and out in just seconds.
The success of these crimes makes them popular. They’re also common because they don’t require sophisticated or unwieldy tools. In many cases, criminals gain access by using bricks, rocks, baseball bats, or crowbars to enter a property.
What Makes Your Property a Target?
Now that you know why smash and grab robberies are popular, it’s important to also know what makes a criminal target a specific property. This will help you understand what to avoid and, therefore, keep your business safe.
First of all, criminals like easy targets. They want to be able to be able to break through a window or door quickly, steal what they’re looking for, and leave before the authorities arrive. If they see a location with large, unprotected windows, they’re much more likely to strike.
Criminals also strike locations where they know they can quickly take items and flee the scene. This means they look for businesses that sell small yet valuable items, such as electronics, jewelry, alcohol, or medication. These items aren’t difficult to carry and they’re not heavy or bulky, so criminals can easily grab up large quantities of expensive merchandise in only a few seconds. If criminals can see unprotected valuables through your store’s window, they’ll be much more likely to strike.
Preventing Smash and Grab Robberies
One of the best things that you can to do prevent a smash and grab robbery is to install physical security gates. These gates place a physical barrier between a criminal and your property. Having gates makes it substantially more difficult for criminals to gain access to a location.
Remember, smash and grab robberies are a common type of crime since criminals don’t require complex tools and because they can be in and out of a location quickly, leaving before authorities arrive. Security gates eliminate these two aspects.
Criminals understand how effective security gates are and, thus, they often avoid locations that have them installed. They would rather strike an easy target. This is a big reason for choosing physical gates over other security tools such as window film. While film may also make it more difficult to break though a window, no one knows it’s there until they’ve already made several attempts to break through. Your property could easily suffer significant damage during these break-in attempts. That’s why it’s better to put up security gates, as they visually deter criminals while keeping your property secure.
Want some more helpful tips to improving the security of your business? Download our helpful guide to Improving Your Security Mindset.
