{"id":1125135,"date":"2026-08-02T01:59:20","date_gmt":"2026-08-02T01:59:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1125135\/"},"modified":"2026-08-02T01:59:20","modified_gmt":"2026-08-02T01:59:20","slug":"burglary-rates-by-council-area-across-northern-ireland-including-the-favourite-way-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1125135\/","title":{"rendered":"Burglary rates by council area across Northern Ireland including the favourite way in"},"content":{"rendered":"

Almost one in three home break-ins take place between 6pm and midnight, new data has revealed<\/p>\n

19:58, 01 Aug 2026Updated 19:58, 01 Aug 2026<\/p>\n

\"Burglary<\/p>\n

Burglary rates by council area across NI have been revealed including the favourite way in(Image: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

New data has revealed the most common recorded entry point for burglars breaking into homes across Northern Ireland.<\/p>\n

Research by CompareNI.com found that thieves used the front door to gain entry in at least 420 burglaries last year, while the back door was used in 286 break-ins. Lower rear windows were the third most popular entry method recorded, accounting for 104 incidents.<\/p>\n

Figures also show homeowners are most at risk of burglary <\/a>between the hours of 6pm and midnight, with almost a third of home break-ins last year occurring during the evening, making it the most common time of day for criminals to strike.<\/p>\n

The findings come as the PSNI<\/a> launches its \u2018Safer Summer Together\u2019 campaign, warning people across Northern Ireland to avoid making their homes easy targets for opportunistic thieves.<\/p>\n

Burglaries are particularly common during the summer months as criminals take advantage of empty houses while families are on holiday, or gain easier access as doors and windows are left open during hot weather<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Data obtained by a Freedom of Information request to police reveals there were 1,854 residential burglaries recorded across Northern Ireland last year, with 31% happening in the evening.<\/p>\n

Just over a quarter (26%) occurred during the day between midday and 6pm, while a further 22% took place overnight between midnight and 6am. Morning was the least likely time for homes to be targeted, with break-ins between 6am and midday accounting for 18%.<\/p>\n

Burglaries recorded by time frame<\/strong><\/p>\n

(Obtained by Freedom of Information request in June 2026)<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Unsurprisingly, Belfast had the highest number of burglaries with 665 incidents, a rate of 189 break-ins per 100,000 people.<\/p>\n

Newry, Mourne and Down recorded the second worst burglary rate at 110 per 100,000 people, with Derry<\/a> City and Strabane<\/a> coming a close third (107).<\/p>\n

At the other end of the scale, Mid Ulster had the lowest burglary rate at 43, followed closely by Ards and North Down (50) and Fermanagh<\/a> and Omagh<\/a> (51).<\/p>\n

While the overall number of burglaries across Northern Ireland <\/a>have dropped by 3% year-on-year (down from 471 in Q1 2025 compared to 455 during the same period this year), over half of the region\u2019s 11 council areas have seen a rise in break-ins.<\/p>\n

Residents in Lisburn<\/a> and Castlereagh saw by far the biggest increase, up by 67%. Burglaries in Fermanagh and Omagh also rose sharply by 45%, as did incidents in Mid Ulster (35%).<\/p>\n

Burglaries recorded per council area in Northern Ireland<\/strong><\/p>\n

(Most recent full year)<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

With these figures in mind, home insurance experts from CompareNI.com are sharing some cost-effective tips to help households stay safe and reduce the risk of burglaries.<\/p>\n

Homeowners should be particularly vigilant against thefts from gardens during the summer months, with tools, furniture, barbecues, children’s toys and bicycles frequently left out on patios and lawns when the weather is warm.<\/p>\n

Ian Wilson, home insurance expert and Managing Director at CompareNI.com<\/a> said: \u201cIt is quite shocking to learn that a third of break-ins in Northern Ireland happen in the evening when many people are still at home, with most thieves coming through the front door.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe summer months create plenty of chances for burglars to strike, as homeowners leave doors and windows open for extra ventilation, or leave gates and sheds unlocked for children to play and valuable garden items used more regularly and perhaps left unsecured.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaking a home safer doesn\u2019t have to break the bank \u2013 there are plenty of affordable steps that homeowners can take to make their property less attractive to burglars, such as installing deadbolt locks, solar-powered motion lights, door and window sensor alarms, or even joining the local Neighbourhood Watch.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a bonus, many of these simple measures can also help save them money on their home insurance premiums.<\/p>\n

\u201cHomeowners should also check their home insurance policy to make sure they have adequate contents cover in place, as many people underestimate the value of their belongings and how much it would cost to replace them.\u201d<\/p>\n

For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage <\/strong>here<\/a> and sign up to our daily newsletter<\/a> here.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Almost one in three home break-ins take place between 6pm and midnight, new data has revealed 19:58, 01…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1125136,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5011],"tags":[80195,89729,80196,188,81144,1144,1618,16,15],"class_list":["post-1125135","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-northern-ireland","tag-co-derry","tag-co-fermanagh","tag-co-tyrone","tag-crime","tag-in-the-know","tag-northern-ireland","tag-psni","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1125135","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1125135"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1125135\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1125136"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1125135"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1125135"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1125135"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}