‘Police already respond to every house burglary in Hertfordshire’ says Police and Crime Commissioner

Hertfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) David Lloyd has reassured residents that every home burglary in the county is already attended by police.

On Wednesday (October 5), chief constables across England and Wales pledged to have their forces attend all home burglaries in the hopes of reducing crime and getting more criminals prosecuted.

But Mr Lloyd said the practice has been in place in Hertfordshire for years.

PCC said: “On a typical day there are seven residential burglaries, which is recognised as being very low for a county of this size. You are very unlikely to be a victim of this crime.”

The number of thefts from home in Hertfordshire is almost half what they were before the pandemic.

Assistant chief constable Genna Telfer said: “Hertfordshire Constabulary has a practice which requires attendance at the scene of a dwelling burglary and has done for some time. This is in line with the national position.”

A recent independent public opinion survey commissioned by Mr Lloyd’s office found that 80 per cent of people felt safe in Hertfordshire, but burglary and cybercrime were residents’ top concerns.

He explained: “We are not complacent though as every home burglary has a devastating effect on the victim.”

PCC added: “I am encouraging the constabulary to go further and use spatial crime analysis and predictive mapping techniques to understand where there is a heightened risk of this type of crime.”

Mr Lloyd’s office has secured more than £700,000 in Home Office funding to increase security at hundreds of properties as part of the Safe Streets project.