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home > In The Media > "City RESIDENT, Spring 2005"
James Ramm reports on personal security in London.
In the following few words we have provided some practical advice on personal safety awareness relevant to anyone living in an urban environment. There are some precautions to take, and a few simple rules to follow, that will ensure greater personal safety. Even if you do not stick to all the rules, just dipping in, following those relevant to your activities and being cognisant of dangers will make you safer. We have taken a snapshot of four general public activities; motoring, walking, jogging and socialising. Motoring Modern cars fitted with sophisticated alarms and immobilisers are virtually impossible to steal without the keys. Car key crime accounts for almost a third of all car related crime and is increasing. Not making keys visible to potential thieves or leaving them in obvious places (by the front door) stops the opportunist thief. More determined thieves resort to “Carjacking” a term coined to describe the forcible theft of a car whilst the owner is returning to the car or actually at the wheel. Although occurrences are reported extensively, they remain reasonably unusual and generally focus on new highly desirable models. Some simple precautions to prevent carjacking: Be especially vigilant if you have a new and expensive vehicle. Locking your doors when driving as well as when parked is the simplest and most effective way of keeping thieves on the right side of the windscreen, but it is often over looked! If you plan to return to your vehicle after dark always park in well-lit areas. Don't park in isolated or enclosed areas. As you walk to your car be aware of your surroundings. Look for individuals loitering near your vehicle or perhaps following you. If it feels wrong, it probably is! If you feel uneasy when returning to your vehicle, walk away, call the police. Always enter the car quickly, lock the doors and drive away immediately. When stopped in traffic avoid pulling up too close to the vehicle in front; leave room to manoeuvre allowing space to pull out of stationary traffic if required. If you are lightly bumped in traffic be suspicious, especially if there is more than one passenger in the other vehicle. If you feel threatened take a note of the vehicle registration and drive to the nearest police station and report the accident. Be aware of someone offering to help you to change a wheel because of a puncture. Program important and emergency numbers into the speed dial of your phone. Walking Attacks on pedestrians are rare, but if you are a nervous individual or you are going somewhere you’re unsure of, it is worth being prepared by thinking and planning ahead. Preparation gives you confidence. Feeling and looking confident is the secret to not being perceived as a potential target. Whilst attacks are made against both sexes, women remain the most vulnerable. Carry a personal attack alarm with you. If you have not got one, buy one. They are inexpensive and extremely effective. Carrying a personal alarm will increase confidence. Avoid dark underpasses or little-used shortcuts unless they are known to you and you are confident about them. Stick to well-used public areas. If possible dress for walking. That doesn’t mean hiking boots; it just means clothes and shoes that are easy to walk in. Wear comfortable shoes or trainers and take posh shoes in a bag or leave a pair in the office – most New Yorkers do this as routine. Carry your bag slung across you with the bag at your front or tucked under your arm, not behind you. Walk facing oncoming traffic, do not walk close to shop doorways and always take a wide line around corners. If you think you are being followed, cross the road. Do not be afraid to ask for help! Try and remember these few rules when walking anywhere:
Jogging Some of these considerations are the same as walking, such as planning your route and trying to stay in well lit busy areas. Try and plan a few different jogging routes and the time at which you will set off. Again remember to tell someone where you are going.
Socializing Like most of the suggestions so far, the advice regarding socialising is mostly common sense. But common sense is soluble in alcohol. Alcohol clouds our judgment and often gives us misplaced confidence to do things that we would not ordinarily do. Try not to let too much alcohol compromise your safety. If you know you are going to have a few drinks, arrange a lift home, or pre-book a taxi. Wandering the streets trying to hail a cab when you have been drinking is hazardous. Most bars will phone a taxi for you. If they won’t, drink somewhere else. Always travel in black cabs or licensed mini cabs. Unlicensed cabs present really serious risks. The incidence of sexual assault is high; many drivers are uninsured and use false identities. Don’t get in one even with friends! In pubs and bars avoid leaving your drink unattended and, if offered a drink, watch it being bought. If you start to feel unwell in a bar, club or pub tell the bar tender immediately - don’t wait!
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