Celebrities beware! The frequency of break-ins at the homes of the rich and famous underlines the importance of not skimping on the less glamorous things in life, like home insurance and car insurance, in favour of an extra meal at the Ivy or the latest in designer fashion.
Reality-TV stars robbed
Kerry Katona, formerly of Atomic-Kitten, experienced a horrific ordeal that outdid any Bushtucker Trial when armed burglars burst into her Cheshire home. Her husband was forced to cough-up £150,000 worth of goods for the thieves to steal, including laptops, televisions and a BMW M5.
Jade Goody is a veteran of both reality-TV and burglaries. Thieves have found their way in to her Essex home three times: removing jewellery worth £50,000 in the most recent incident (May 2008).
Things didn’t improve for Big Brother 2008 contestant Alex De Gale after she was kicked off the show. Whilst she had been offending her housemates onscreen, vandals had carved insults into her prized possession, a black BMW. We’d suggest that future BB applicants who feel that they may cause a bit of controversy should ensure that they have sufficient home insurance and car insurance before entering the house.
Pop burglaries
Simon Cowell has discovered that Britain’s Got Burglars. The music-mogul’s London dwelling was targeted by thieves as he was away from home discovering the latest five-minute pop-wonder on American Idol. Renovations to the multi-million pound mansion are thought to have left the building especially vulnerable to thieves.
Building work, especially where exterior walls or windows are being replaced, can mean that burglars are given a helping hand to access your property. So not only do you need to take extra care to keep your home secure, but you also need to notify your home insurance company whenever you’ve got the builders in.
Simon’s X-Factor colleague Sharon Osbourne and her husband Ozzy have also fallen prey to thieves. Two criminals escaped from the couple’s Buckinghamshire mansion with £1m in jewellery, despite the former Black Sabbath frontman’s unsuccessful attempt to tackle one of them. Is this proof that the rocker, who once bit the head off a dove to impress record-label executives, is a danger to birds but not burglars?
Madonna and Guy Ritchie have had their London home broken into twice, with a Range Rover among the items stolen. It seems that the Material Girl should ensure that her possessions are looked after more adequately.
Among other singers to feel the pinch are ex-Spice Girl Geri Halliwell, who had to move into a hotel after her home was burgled and vandalised, and Liverpudlian crooner and TV presenter Cilla Black whose Buckinghamshire home was ransacked to the tune of £1 million.
Footballers tackled by thieves
Footballers, and especially Liverpool players, seem to be the most frequent victims. The long list of Anfield-related incidents includes Jerzy Dudek, Pepe Reina, Stephen Gerrard, Daniel Agger, Dirk Kuyt and Peter Crouch.
Unluckiest of all could be Emile Heskey who was burgled whilst playing for both Liverpool and Wigan Athletic. In the latter incident (July 2008), his partner was held at knifepoint. The couple’s BMW was among the items taken; again demonstrating the importance of having adequate car insurance as well as home insurance in the battle against the burglars.
Yet Duncan Ferguson has demonstrated that footballers aren’t always a good choice of victim. In 2001, burglar Barry Dawson was hospitalised after being apprehended by the former Everton player whilst attempting a break-in at his Lancashire home. This story clearly didn’t reach Carl Bishop, who suffered a similar fate when trying to burgle the player’s new home in Merseyside two years later; the thief spent a couple of days in casualty after a confrontation with Duncan. Obviously, violence isn’t recommended by Confused.com, but it would be a foolish thief who tried for the hat-trick of break-ins at Ferguson’s home.
Burglary prevention for the less famous
Even if potential thieves won’t be able to use the latest Hello! double-page spread as a guide to your valuables, determined burglars can usually find a way into your home. To lessen the likelihood of a break-in, follow our Confused.com tips on how to make your house secure.
But as robust security measures won’t always prevent a burglary, another way to protect your possessions is with adequate contents insurance and motor insurance. And if the worst should happen, our Confused.com tips on what to do if you get burgled will prove invaluable.
