Knowing the law
068 Helen Tremenheere
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1. Mary: Okay. So, Helen, thank you very much for agreeing to be interviewed. We wanted to talk with you today about the burglary you had. Can you tell us what happened?
2. Helen: I had been away all day in Harrogate - this was last June - and I came home after picking up the children, it was about five o'clock in the afternoon, and I opened the door and went in the house and noticed how everything was a mess, especially upstairs. And the bedroom was the worst room and there were clothes everywhere. The cupboards, the drawers, everything was open and in the study room there were papers everywhere, passports on the floor - so that was a good sign; they hadn't taken the passports.
3. Very little mess downstairs, thankfully, but I noticed I had very foolishly left open the children's bedroom window and we had a ladder in the back garden. So, it was very clear that they had come up through there, through the back.
4. So, after feeling very shocked the first thing to phone the police.
5. Mary: Okay. So you went out for the day and you left a window open and there was a ladder outside?
6. Helen: Yes.
7. Mary: Yes? So the burglars climbed up the ladder?
8. Helen: That's right.
9. Mary: They came in through the window?
10. Helen: Yes.
11. Mary: Did they take anything?
12. Helen: Yes, they took, the biggest thing they took was the laptop; biggest in size. They took cameras. There were small things, my camcorder. So, thankfully, it wasn't too much or too many things.
13. Mary: Hmm-uh. So they left your passports?
14. Helen: They left the passports, amazingly. Left the TV. I suppose it was too big to carry out.
15. Mary: Right. But they took your laptop, your camcorder and some other electrical things?
16. Helen: Yes, yes.
17. Mary: Okay. So then you said you felt shocked?
18. Helen: Yes, yes.
19. Mary: You felt shocked? Okay.
20. Helen: And very nervous because somebody's been in your house and touched your things.
21. Mary: Yes, yes.
22. Helen: Been through your things. Especially the bedroom was quite shocking to see it in such a mess, even though we had nothing in there worth taking. It's just very shocking to know that somebody's been through your personal things.
23. Mary: Yes. So you felt horrible?
24. Helen: Hmm.
25. Mary: But then you rang the police?
26. Helen: Hmm-uh.
27. Mary: And what happened then?
28. Helen: Dialled 999 and they ask, "Ambulance, fire or police?" and you have to say which one. So, "Police" and very quickly gave the details over the phone and they said somebody would come to the house as soon as possible. So, we waited. They said not to touch anything, so I didn't touch anything. I left it as it was.
29. My husband came home from work and I had to ring work to tell them I wasn't coming because I had a class at six o'clock. I had to say I wasn't coming because I was waiting for the police. They came about eight o'clock in the evening. Quite late because they were very busy they said. And they came and they asked me a few questions. They asked me what happened. They had a look at the window where they came in.
30. Mary: Okay. So you rang 999 and you said you wanted the police and you told them what had happened?
31. Helen: Yes, yes.
32. Mary: And they came a bit later. And when they came, what did they do?
33. Helen: They were very reassuring with us and they asked us questions about what had happened and they looked carefully in all the rooms. They wrote down everything that had been taken and they wanted that very specifically, very clearly, because when, I think, the insurance company would be then be in touch with them to find out if I was telling the truth later to the insurance company. And if they were ever to recover those items, then they would know.
34. Mary: Right.
35. Helen: Yes.
36. Mary: Did anybody take fingerprints? Did they try to find one?
37. Helen: Yes. Somebody else came. She had a big black box briefcase with all her equipment inside and she went, the first thing is, was, she went to the children's room, put some silver powder onto the window ledge and brushed it with a brush so that the prints could come up. Unfortunately, they were wearing gloves.
38. Mary: Right. So there were no fingerprints?
39. Helen: So no fingerprints.
40. Mary: No fingerprints?
41. Helen: And they tried downstairs in the cupboard they had been in as well and in a couple of other places, but they couldn't get any prints.
42. Mary: Right. So they tried to find fingerprints, but they couldn't find any?
43. Helen: Hmm.
44. Mary: Okay. And so then later you contacted your insurance company?
45. Helen: Hmm, that's right, yes, yeah, and they asked about all the details. What had been taken? They wanted to know the makes of the models, how long we'd had them, the approximate value of the models. Everything they wanted to know in quite a lot of detail, so then they could work out how much they were going to give us back in replacement.
46. Mary: Did you speak to them on the phone, or did you have to fill out a form to give that information?
47. Helen: I spoke to them on the phone, yes.
48. Mary: Right.
49. Helen: The house insurance company.
50. Mary: Right. And then they gave you some money?
51. Helen: Yes. They sent Argos vouchers.
52. Mary: Did they?
53. Helen: Yes.
54. Mary: Right.
55. Helen: The camcorder, they offered a replacement or the equivalent in Argos vouchers. The laptop, they chose the laptop and sent a replacement. That was taken care of by another company.
56. Mary: Right, okay. So what have you learnt from all of that now, Helen?
57. Helen: Oh. The police gave us quite a bit of advice as to how our house should be more secure.
58. Mary: So what advice would you give to me then? How can I make my house more secure?
59. Helen: Well, one of the things was, well, obviously, everybody should make sure all windows and doors are locked before they leave the house. They suggested getting a burglar alarm because that often puts off thieves from coming in. We also have a problem that we don't have a gate on the side of our house. There is very easy access to the back of our house, so our security is not good and burglars can see that.
60. We also, at the time, did not have a light at the front. I mean, they came in the day so darkness was not an issue, but we have since got a light. So, in the evening the lights come on if somebody walks past that light.
61. Mary: Okay. So, the police said lock your doors and windows?
62. Helen: Yes.
63. Mary: Get a light outside if possible?
64. Helen: Outside, yes.
65. Mary: Make sure that people can't get into the garden?
66. Helen: In, yeah.
67. Mary: Easily, yeah?
68. Helen: Hmm-uh. They also gave us a pen in which to write, on all our electrical expensive items we can write our postcode on so that, in case they are stolen, with a special infrared light they can see the postcode on it and they know where it comes from.
69. Mary: Okay. So if they find it later, they can trace it, they can return it back?
70. Helen: That's right.
71. Mary: Okay, very useful.
72. Helen: Yes, yes.
73. Mary: Thank you. Okay.
1. Mary: Okay. So, Helen, thank you very much for agreeing to be interviewed. We wanted to talk with you today about the burglary you had. Can you tell us what happened?
2. Helen: I had been away all day in Harrogate - this was last June - and I came home after picking up the children, it was about five o'clock in the afternoon, and I opened the door and went in the house and noticed how everything was a mess, especially upstairs. And the bedroom was the worst room and there were clothes everywhere. The cupboards, the drawers, everything was open and in the study room there were papers everywhere, passports on the floor - so that was a good sign; they hadn't taken the passports.
3. Very little mess downstairs, thankfully, but I noticed I had very foolishly left open the children's bedroom window and we had a ladder in the back garden. So, it was very clear that they had come up through there, through the back.
4. So, after feeling very shocked the first thing to phone the police.
5. Mary: Okay. So you went out for the day and you left a window open and there was a ladder outside?
6. Helen: Yes.
7. Mary: Yes? So the burglars climbed up the ladder?
8. Helen: That's right.
9. Mary: They came in through the window?
10. Helen: Yes.
11. Mary: Did they take anything?
12. Helen: Yes, they took, the biggest thing they took was the laptop; biggest in size. They took cameras. There were small things, my camcorder. So, thankfully, it wasn't too much or too many things.
13. Mary: Hmm-uh. So they left your passports?
14. Helen: They left the passports, amazingly. Left the TV. I suppose it was too big to carry out.
15. Mary: Right. But they took your laptop, your camcorder and some other electrical things?
16. Helen: Yes, yes.
17. Mary: Okay. So then you said you felt shocked?
18. Helen: Yes, yes.
19. Mary: You felt shocked? Okay.
20. Helen: And very nervous because somebody's been in your house and touched your things.
21. Mary: Yes, yes.
22. Helen: Been through your things. Especially the bedroom was quite shocking to see it in such a mess, even though we had nothing in there worth taking. It's just very shocking to know that somebody's been through your personal things.
23. Mary: Yes. So you felt horrible?
24. Helen: Hmm.
25. Mary: But then you rang the police?
26. Helen: Hmm-uh.
27. Mary: And what happened then?
28. Helen: Dialled 999 and they ask, "Ambulance, fire or police?" and you have to say which one. So, "Police" and very quickly gave the details over the phone and they said somebody would come to the house as soon as possible. So, we waited. They said not to touch anything, so I didn't touch anything. I left it as it was.
29. My husband came home from work and I had to ring work to tell them I wasn't coming because I had a class at six o'clock. I had to say I wasn't coming because I was waiting for the police. They came about eight o'clock in the evening. Quite late because they were very busy they said. And they came and they asked me a few questions. They asked me what happened. They had a look at the window where they came in.
30. Mary: Okay. So you rang 999 and you said you wanted the police and you told them what had happened?
31. Helen: Yes, yes.
32. Mary: And they came a bit later. And when they came, what did they do?
33. Helen: They were very reassuring with us and they asked us questions about what had happened and they looked carefully in all the rooms. They wrote down everything that had been taken and they wanted that very specifically, very clearly, because when, I think, the insurance company would be then be in touch with them to find out if I was telling the truth later to the insurance company. And if they were ever to recover those items, then they would know.
34. Mary: Right.
35. Helen: Yes.
36. Mary: Did anybody take fingerprints? Did they try to find one?
37. Helen: Yes. Somebody else came. She had a big black box briefcase with all her equipment inside and she went, the first thing is, was, she went to the children's room, put some silver powder onto the window ledge and brushed it with a brush so that the prints could come up. Unfortunately, they were wearing gloves.
38. Mary: Right. So there were no fingerprints?
39. Helen: So no fingerprints.
40. Mary: No fingerprints?
41. Helen: And they tried downstairs in the cupboard they had been in as well and in a couple of other places, but they couldn't get any prints.
42. Mary: Right. So they tried to find fingerprints, but they couldn't find any?
43. Helen: Hmm.
44. Mary: Okay. And so then later you contacted your insurance company?
45. Helen: Hmm, that's right, yes, yeah, and they asked about all the details. What had been taken? They wanted to know the makes of the models, how long we'd had them, the approximate value of the models. Everything they wanted to know in quite a lot of detail, so then they could work out how much they were going to give us back in replacement.
46. Mary: Did you speak to them on the phone, or did you have to fill out a form to give that information?
47. Helen: I spoke to them on the phone, yes.
48. Mary: Right.
49. Helen: The house insurance company.
50. Mary: Right. And then they gave you some money?
51. Helen: Yes. They sent Argos vouchers.
52. Mary: Did they?
53. Helen: Yes.
54. Mary: Right.
55. Helen: The camcorder, they offered a replacement or the equivalent in Argos vouchers. The laptop, they chose the laptop and sent a replacement. That was taken care of by another company.
56. Mary: Right, okay. So what have you learnt from all of that now, Helen?
57. Helen: Oh. The police gave us quite a bit of advice as to how our house should be more secure.
58. Mary: So what advice would you give to me then? How can I make my house more secure?
59. Helen: Well, one of the things was, well, obviously, everybody should make sure all windows and doors are locked before they leave the house. They suggested getting a burglar alarm because that often puts off thieves from coming in. We also have a problem that we don't have a gate on the side of our house. There is very easy access to the back of our house, so our security is not good and burglars can see that.
60. We also, at the time, did not have a light at the front. I mean, they came in the day so darkness was not an issue, but we have since got a light. So, in the evening the lights come on if somebody walks past that light.
61. Mary: Okay. So, the police said lock your doors and windows?
62. Helen: Yes.
63. Mary: Get a light outside if possible?
64. Helen: Outside, yes.
65. Mary: Make sure that people can't get into the garden?
66. Helen: In, yeah.
67. Mary: Easily, yeah?
68. Helen: Hmm-uh. They also gave us a pen in which to write, on all our electrical expensive items we can write our postcode on so that, in case they are stolen, with a special infrared light they can see the postcode on it and they know where it comes from.
69. Mary: Okay. So if they find it later, they can trace it, they can return it back?
70. Helen: That's right.
71. Mary: Okay, very useful.
72. Helen: Yes, yes.
73. Mary: Thank you. Okay.
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biggest burglars downstairs fingerprints insurance ladder prints replacement secure shocked shocking somebody
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