Marking your valuables can be a real deterrent

Garda Crime Watch with Michael Walsh – a monthly column by An Garda Síochána in Galway to increase public awareness on crime prevention.

MANY of us were very fortunate to receive nice gifts this Christmas such as electronic goods, jewellery, bicycles and so on. But, have you thought about the security of these items and how you can best protect them from theft going forward.

According to research carried out by the Garda National Crime Prevention Unit over €35 million worth of property is stolen from Irish homes each year, with jewellery accounting for approximately 40% of that figure.

While there are many security measures you can put in place, this week I’m going to talk about property marking – this is where you put a mark on your property, so that it can be identified as yours.

There are many methods of marking property, they range from simple ultra violet pens to etching and engraving, as well as many varied commercial products and schemes.

Property that is clearly and obviously marked is less attractive to a thief as it is more difficult to sell. Stolen property, recovered by Gardai, is more easily returned to its rightful owner if it is clearly marked with identifiable information.

One popular type of marking is using your Eircode. In fact Eircode have teamed up with not-for-profit company Property Marking Ireland and local communities, to roll out a nationwide property marking programme which aims to combat property theft and assist in the identification and return of stolen property.

The property marking machine stamps a pattern of dots, in the shape of an Eircode onto the selected item.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

Get the Connacht Tribune Live app

The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.