Pensioners not making their homes secure
18/06/2007
Millions of British pensioners are putting their safety at risk by failing to have any basic home security measures in place, according to new research by Homewise. And the leading retirement finance and property specialist believes that lack of money is preventing many from taking steps to secure their homes.
The survey reveals that almost 55% of pensioners – or nearly five million people – do not currently have a burglar alarm at their property. According to Homewise, over three million over 65s do not have a security chain on the front door, over two million have no outside lighting and over 1.5 million pensioners have just a single lock on their front door.
Homewise says that many pensioners realise how vulnerable they are but are unable to afford the cost of installing security measures and cannot justify the outlay from what is often a very small disposable income. The company estimates that it can cost between £500 and £1000 to buy and install a full set of security measures.