Half of Brits scrap Christmas traditions over crime fears

Millions of Britons will forgo festive traditions such as answering the door to carol singers and hanging Christmas lights for fear of being burgled, a report from gadget insurance provider Protect Your Bubble has revealed.

More than 40% of those surveyed said they have done away with some Christmas traditions for fear of advertising that possibility expensive presents could be found inside their home to opportunistic criminals.

One in six people (16.2%) will no longer put Christmas presents underneath the tree, while 13.4% confirmed they will not be answering the door to carollers.

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More than a tenth of the population will also hide their tree from street view and 7.6% will not hang Christmas lights.

2017 saw a 20% spike in burglaries, thefts and robberies over the Christmas fortnight, compared with three years before.

The Daily Mail estimates there were on average 448 burglaries across Britain each day over the festive period last year, although the Daily Express claims as many as one in 10 Britons have a friend or family member who has been burgled.

According to separate research from LED Hut, a burglar takes just one minute to decide whether to enter your home, and in that time will spot up to 11 security flaws.

Growing concern about falling victim to Christmas criminals has led many to step up security measures around their home.

Of the two-thirds polled by Protect Your Bubble who said they would be taking extra precautions over Christmas, 61% plan to leave the lights on while they are away from home, while a quarter will go as far as installing Wi-Fi cameras to keep an eye on their property.