By JONATHON HOWARD
A COMBINATION of good police work and strong community partnerships have reduced the number of break and enters across Warwick, according to Warwick Police Senior Sergeant Stewart Day.
Sen Sgt Day said the total number of Warwick break and enters had fallen 30 per cent during the past three years to the lowest number in the past decade.
“Good police work and strong partnerships with community groups, the chamber of commerce and residents have helped produce this great result,” he said.
The figures were announced after an RACQ-led report revealed Warwick home owners had lodged the least number of insurance claims making the region one of the least likely to be the victims of home invasion, according to the 2013 RACQ Insurance Home Security Index.
Rockhampton topped the list with the lowest number of home theft insurance claims during the past 12 months.
The RACQ index, which calculates the number of home theft claims made per 100 RACQ policies in each postcode, ranked 4700, 4370 and 4161 the least-likely postcodes for houses to be broken into.
In the greater Brisbane area it was Alexandra Hills where homes were least likely to be broken into.
On the other hand residents in Boronia Heights, Green Bank and New Beith, needed to lock up more carefully with the suburbs chalking up the highest number of break-in claims during the past year.
The first two – both in country Queensland and including suburbs such as Rockhampton, The Range, Wandal, Warwick, Maryvale and Rosenthal Heights – recorded zero claims last year.
Next on the list, postcode 4161, Alexandra Hills, had one claim for every 1000 policies – that is 20 times less than most postcodes in the Logan region.
But home buyers no longer need to rely on reputation and hearsay when considering their new home.
The Queensland Police Service’s new Crime Maps, available online, detail suburb-by-suburb and incident-by-incident, crimes reported across the state in the past 13 years.
It is updated nightly to a week ago and includes all crimes except sexual offences and domestic violence incidents.
For a homebuyer moving to a new neighbourhood, the QPS Crime Maps are a potentially game-changing research tool but Real Estate Institute of Queensland acting CEO Peter Brown said he didn’t believe the newly-accessible statistics would influence property prices.
“Buyers all have varying criteria so what is important to one person is not necessarily important to another,” he said.
“Buyers tend to allocate differing levels of importance to a huge variety of factors, such as affordability, location, pools or proximity to public transport and shops.”
RACQ executive manager insurance communications Mike Sopinski said it was pleasing to see large areas with no or low insurance claims but warned the data represented only a snapshot and residents shouldn’t become complacent.
“Property thieves do strike indiscriminately,” he said.
According to the RACQ study, the majority of home theft was opportunistic and almost one in four claims last year were the result of an open door or window.
BREAK OUT
TOP 10 SECURE POSTCODES
(According to the 2013 RACQ Insurance Home Security Index)
4370 Allan, Bony Mountain, Canningvale, Cherry Gully, Clintonvale, Cunningham, Danderoo, Elbow Valley, Freestone, Gladfield, Glengallan, Glennie Heights, Junabee, Loch Lomond, Maryvale, Morgan Park, Mount Colliery, Murrays Bridge, North Branch, Pratten, Rosehill, Rosenthal Heights, Silverwood, Sladevale, Swan Creek, Thanes Creek, The Hermitage, Toolburra, Upper Freestone, Upper Wheatvale, Warwick, Wildash, Willowvale, Womina;
4700 Allenstown, Depot Hill, Fairy Bower, Great Keppel Island, Port Curtis, Rockhampton, The Keppels, The Range, Wandal, West Rockhampton; 4161 Alexandra Hills; 4565 Tewantin; 4505 Burpengary; 4163 Cleveland; 4504 Narangba; 4570 Curra, Gympie; 4021 Kippa Ring; and 4650 Maryborough.
