The winter months bring with them an increased risk of burglaries. The dark nights and people not being used to checking doors and windows are locked can offer a perfect opportunity for thieves. Over winter, claims history shows that break-ins tend to go up by over a third.

Now, as the clocks go back and the nights continue to draw in it’s important to think about security and the steps you can take to improve the measures you have in place.

The good news is there are a number of things you can do to help avoid break-ins and make you feel safe and secure both at home and in your business premises. Here are some timely tips to help avoid a break-in over winter.

What can you do to keep you home and business secure over winter?

1. Fit an alarm system

If you don’t already have an alarm for your home or business, now is the time to install a security system. Alarms are a great deterrent against thieves. Visually, an alarm box stands out to a potential thief, but they also alert your neighbours if an intruder takes the opportunity to try and access your property.

Wired burglar alarm systems are ideal for system upgrades where cables are already installed, or for new builds where cables can be installed at first fix.

Alternatively, wireless burglar alarms mean no cables, no lifting of floor boards or carpets and no disruption to décor. Wireless systems use the same technology as wired systems, meaning all the same great features without the installation fuss.

2. Get an alarm check up

If you’ve had your alarm for a number of years and you don’t get it checked regularly, it may not be doing what you need it to do. Similarly, you may have inherited your security system when you moved in to your property and you don’t know where to start with getting it checked.

Maintenance is essential to help ensure the alarm is working as it should be, when you need it the most.

3. Install CCTV

Reliable CCTV security systems can be installed with minimal disruption and at reasonable price points. State-of-the-art ultra HD 4K systems can be designed to meet specific needs and are flexible to enable upgrades for every customers’ specification. Remote viewing can also be an option, and it’s possible to check out your CCTV cameras using a smartphone App and see live footage and playback images from anywhere in the world.

The latest 4k ultra HD CCTV cameras give crystal clear images day AND night, with ultra-low light capabilities and 50m night vision in complete darkness – perfect for these winter months.

4. Door access control systems

Access control makes it more difficult for potential thieves to enter a premises and the chance of them committing a crime is much reduced.

Video intercom systems to the entry door can help a business (or homeowner) manage who can enter a building, allowing you to check and confirm a visitors’ identity before they can enter – ensuring it is easy for genuine customers to get in and out. A magnetic lock (or Maglock) allows staff to remotely unlock the door and let customers enter the building after checking. Once the ‘unlock’ button is released the door re-locks to ensure unverified visitors do not get in.

5. Police monitored intruder alarms

Further preventative measures can also include the installation of a police monitored intruder alarm. Because Mint Security Systems is an NSI accredited security company, we are able to fit intruder alarms that are connected directly to the police, ensuring the fastest response times possible.

Still feel in the dark about your security? Speak to us here at Mint We’re a friendly team and we understand your safety concerns and it doesn’t cost anything to have
a chat about your security needs.

We operate a full management system, a 24/7 engineer callout service, we use the latest products with current firmware, and we are audited twice a year to ensure our installation work meets NSI standards. Our customers range from businesses and homeowners in Worksop, Retford, Chesterfield, Mansfield and Sheffield, through to national clients stretching from Padstow to Inverness.

Get in touch and find out more about our services and how we can help you feel safe and secure at home or in your business premises over winter.

Contact [email protected] and let us help you protect the things you care about the most.

Increased security at Wagz Pet Boutique helps protect your pooch.

They’re man’s best friend and a much loved part of the family… but with dog theft increasing by an estimated 250% this year, Worksop pet grooming salon Wagz Pet Boutique decided it was time to  enhance security.

Offering everything from doggie daycare, to grooming and microchipping, Wagz is a loving, enriched environment designed to care for your pets. Customers rely on Wagz to keep their dogs happy, healthy and safe – and with security at front of mind they decided to contact Mint to find out how their business security could be improved.

Covid-19 has increased the amount of time families spend at home, which has led to a huge spike in demand for puppies and dogs. Prices have increased by many thousands of pounds, making dogs a valuable target for thieves.

Wagz owner Helen, was concerned that the increase in dog theft may make her business a target for criminals and she wanted to do everything she could to make sure that didn’t happen. Working with Helen, Mint were able to design and install a range of security measures to help protect her business and the pets she looks after.

Access control was one of our first considerations when enhancing the security system at Wagz. By making it more difficult for potential thieves to enter the premises, the chance of them committing a crime is much reduced.

We installed a video intercom system to the entry door to better manage who could enter the building, whilst still making it easy for genuine customers to get in and out. This allows Helen and her staff to check and visually confirm visitors’ identity before they can enter.

We also fitted the entry door with a Magnetic Lock (or Maglock) that allows Wagz staff to remotely unlock the door and allow customers to enter the building after checking. Once the ‘unlock’ button is released the door re-locks to ensure unverified visitors do not enter.

Inside the building, Mint installed a number of panic buttons in carefully considered areas and within easy reach for staff. If a staff member is confronted by a threat, the buttons can be pressed to trigger a panic alarm that connects directly to the police. This allows for a rapid response should a security incident occur.

A final preventative measure was the installation of a police monitored intruder alarm. Because Mint Security Systems is an NSI accredited security company, we are able to fit intruder alarms that are connected directly to the police, ensuring the fastest response times possible.

Protecting customers and staff is an important consideration for any business and we’re confident the team at Wagz Pet Boutique will feel reassured with the enhanced security measures we have put in place.

As well as installations like these, Mint Security Systems operate a full management system, a 24/7 engineer callout service, we use the latest products with current firmware, and we are audited twice a year to ensure our installation work meets NSI standards. Our customers range from businesses and homeowners in Worksop, Retford, Chesterfield, Mansfield and Sheffield, through to nationwide clients ranging from Edinburgh to Essex.

If you’d like to find out how we can improve the security of your business, we’d love to talk. Call Mint Security and see how we can help protect the things you care about the most.

CCTV Cameras Installation Tips

So you’re thinking about having CCTV cameras installed to protect your property and looking for some top tips from the experts on where to position your cameras to give the best view. Mint Security Systems have been installing CCTV systems for over 15 years so we can point you in the right direction for help with positioning and installing a CCTV System. 

Camera Positioning.
It is vital that you position cameras to cover all the key access points to your property; this would generally include covering the front, sides and rear of your property. Normally overlooked the front is a vulnerable area with most potential burglars knocking on the front door prior to breaking in to a property to check if anyone is home. Also the drive is another key area to cover to provide a view over your car.

Front Elevation.
Our recommendation for the front of the property is one camera adjacent to the front door to give a good quality facial image of anybody approaching your door, this camera can be set up with line crossing detection to send a screenshot alert to your smartphone when anybody approaches.

The next camera location to consider should be to cover the drive and your car (area as per camera 2 in the example below). Vehicles are a target to thieves parked up overnight on a drive so a darkfighter or similar low light CCTV camera is recommended to give a colour image even at night.

Lastly on the front a high level camera under the soffit is recommended to give an overview of your front garden and road area (as per camera 3 in our example below), this shows any suspicious activity as they approach your property, any vehicles they may be using, direction of travel and also any noticeable features like clothing or footwear.

Side Elevation.
The side elevation of the property needs covering with a CCTV camera at both sides of the house if access is possible. With the side of the property generally being narrow we recommend using a varifocal camera so the image can be adjusted to just focus on the path area and not the house wall or neighbouring property, if the camera can see too much brickwork the infra night vision will bounce back at night giving useless image. The camera should ideally be positioned on the rear corner looking back to the front to give a good image of anybody hopping over the gate or fence.

Rear Elevation.
The rear elevation can generally be covered using a camera positioned under the soffit to give an overview of the rear garden. If you have an extension or conservatory an additional camera should also be positioned to cover any blind spots. See cameras 4 and 5 in the example below.

A camera looking back towards the rear of the house always provides a good view and can be positioned on a shed or tree at the top of the garden. The cable can be run in some flexi conduit or if you have power in your shed the camera can connect back to your recorder over Wifi. Potential burglars don’t always notice looking back towards the house so can catch them unawares with their hoods down, the camera will also give a good view of your back doors and windows.

Notes
We always recommend using a professional NSI accredited company like Mint Security to install your CCTV system. We can provide a site survey to discuss camera positions and cable routes in the Worksop, Retford, Chesterfield, Sheffield, Rotherham, Doncaster and Nottingham areas.

Also remember to discuss with neighbours if any cameras are likely to be overlooking their property, you will normally find that they are fine with this as it provides them with some protection. If they do have an issue you can pixelate out any areas of their property from the DVR. 

We do understand that people like to install CCTV systems so we hope you find this camera positioning guide helpful.

With an 8% increase in theft during the last year alone many businesses and homeowners are looking at different ways to protect their properties and the main question asked is should we install a Burglar Alarm or CCTV System? In this definitive guide we look at both options for securing your property and provide some insights you may not have considered..

Burglar Alarms should be considered as your first line of defence, if you have a Burglar Alarm armed (set) and an intruder breaks into your home the alarm will sound and the fact is most burglars don’t want to stay in a property where an alarm is sounding. 

A monitored alarm system will give you extra peace of mind as it is linked to an alarm receiving centre (ARC). Once sensors have picked up 2 notifications the alarm will be activated as confirmed, the ARC will contact the Police and contact you or the relevant contact on the list of keyholders you supply.

Also consider the fact that if all properties around you have alarm bell boxes installed and yours doesn’t this will make you more of a target to potential intruders, this is also true of older looking bell boxes, chances are that if your bell box looks old your alarm system is too and a burglar is more likely to take a chance that your alarm will not operate if he breaks in. 

Most modern Burglar Alarm bell boxes have LEDs that pulse from side to side and some sounder’s are illuminated, this provides an excellent visual deterrent to warn off potential burglars before they even chance their luck.

With the advances in wireless alarm technology the installation process of having a Burglar Alarm installed is now less stressful and systems can be quickly installed in your home or business with no detrimental effect to your decorating and no need for carpets being lifted.

Wireless alarms can be installed usually in one working day and the average cost for a professionally installed system in a standard detached home is around £800. This is a small price to pay to protect your home or business.

CCTV Cameras provide an effective way of monitoring your home or business while you are away and with Smartphone remote viewing Apps you can check-in at any time to see what’s happening.

Smart Alerts like motion detection, line crossing and tripwire can be setup to alert you when someone approaches your property. These alerts are sent to your Smartphone as push notifications with an image attached showing the moment the alert was generated.

Most CCTV systems are able to record footage to a computer style hard drive this allows you to playback recorded video from the previous 30 days and this can then be downloaded to a USB memory stick.

Seeing in the dark is now a standard feature on CCTV systems and some cameras can even see in complete darkness while remaining in colour such as Darkfighter cameras.

Police can gain crucial details from your CCTV system such build, size and clothing of burglars and this could be linked with footage from neighbours systems, obviously they are able to use the CCTV for looking at other incidents.

Cabling for CCTV Systems generally needs to be installed as wireless cameras are very power hungry so batteries would constantly need replacing, a professional installer can normally make light work of this task.

The average cost of a 2 camera CCTV system is around £900 so the price is very comparable to an Alarm System.

So to sum up Burglar Alarms should be considered essential for protecting your property, CCTV is more for reviewing recorded footage after the event and keeping an eye on your property.

We do recommend having your Alarm or CCTV Cameras installed by an accredited installer such as one approved by the NSI (National Security Inspectorate) or SSAIB (Security Systems and Alarms Inspection Board).

Top 5 Home Security Tips to Protect Your Property.

You may have heard that burglaries are more likely to occur during the daytime than at night… and that’s actually true! According to The Office for National Statistics states that burglaries do happen in daylight, at a time when homeowners are more likely to be out at work.

However, at this time of year, when the dark nights start to roll in, it’s important that we take measures to protect our home in the evenings as the reduced visibility can make it harder for ourselves, our neighbours, and passersby to detect that something isn’t right.

Here are 5 experts tips for protecting your home over the winter months:

1. Leave Your Lights On
Research shows that almost all thieves want to avoid meeting homeowners during a burglary, so one of the best ways to protect your home is to make it appear occupied. If you’re heading out for the evening, consider leaving your lights on, although this can prove to be costly. A great alternative is to look into installing timed lights which mimic motion throughout, making it seem as though people are walking around the home.

2. Turn Your Lights OFF
One of the biggest problems with turning lights on at night is that it can be very easy to forget to turn them back off in the mornings, especially as the sun comes up and makes it harder to tell that lights are still on. The issue with this is that lights that are left on constantly can indicate that there is no one home to control them. We recommend dusk-till-dawn lights, which automatically switch themselves off under well-lit conditions.

3. Secure Entries/Exits
Burglaries are very seldom conducted randomly. Homes are targeted either because they appear unoccupied, or because an easy entry/exit route has been identified which can minimise disturbances. To protect your home as best you can, ensure that you’re not accidentally offering thieves an easy way in or out. Check all windows and doors, as well as alternative entry points such as adjoined garages or outbuildings.

4. Install CCTV
CCTV not only acts as a deterrent for burglars, but also helps you to collect evidence should thieves manage to access your property. The Government confirms that CCTV footage can sometimes be used as court evidence in these situations. At Mint Security, we’re home CCTV specialists, offering a range of digital CCTV recorders that enable remote viewing of your cameras from any location using the ProControl+ mobile app.

5. Restrict Access
Despite best efforts, burglaries can and do happen, but it is possible to minimise the impact. Research suggests that ‘high value’ areas of the house are often targeted first. High value rooms are mainly located on the second floor, such as bedrooms and studies which are more likely to contain small, easy-to-carry items such as jewellery rather than larger items like TVs. If possible, keep these doors locked to restrict access.

For more security tips and to protect your premises, contact us today.