CCTV to do or not?

[Rosie2020]

I am currently renting a property in a expensive area. I pay high rent.

Usually there is virtually no crime however lock down has kicked in and the opportunists are on the lookout.

About a week ago my next door neighbour had someone go into their house and they stole her purse. I accept this is her fault because she had her front door and all the windows open at the time.

Then I saw a guy looking dodgy walking around my house/area. It’s odd because my house is in a gated area and my house is the only one there. There is also a bit of parking. My house is behind the high street in a small village etc.

Anyway my other neighbour insists on leaving the security gate open “because this is not X town and crime doesn’t happen here”.

Fast forward a week and someone came at 3am and started stealing commercial bins. No joke. People are desperate for money now jobs are gone.

I don’t like the thought of opportunists walking around at 3am and potentially stealing my stuff or going into back garden and stealing my expensive furniture.

I’m thinking of putting a amazon ring camera in my rooms to cover the back garden, porch area and my car.

I know this might seem extreme but I live by myself and I’m not feeling comfortable.

My neighbour who refuses to close the gate pays considerably less rent for her flat and it is on the first floor so no major security issue for her.

At the front of my house there is car parking. I am not overlooking anyone directly in front. To my right is the ladies flat and she has created a small sitting area outside her property. I’m not planning to overlook her property.

Do you think this is acceptable? I think my cameras would only pick up any incoming cars and the postman delivering etc

Can you make some recommendations on cameras? I do not want to involve landlord so I can’t have anything fitted.

I appreciate that I will need to display a notice and plan to tell my neighbour before I do it and I will say it’s only covering my personal property etc.

I also think it’s really selfish that the gate is left unlocked and she refuses to have a lock on it.

I have a 3 bedroom property about 1,600 feet so not huge but not overly small either.

Any help would be appreciated.

You will need to speak to your LL as its his property. The ndn leaving the gates open could invalidate any insurance policy and that needs to be addressed. If she is renting it could be a breach of her lease so her LL or letting agents need to know. Is there a residents committee or freeholder that can get involved. I would also ask the local police to come and give a security talk if they offer that service.

Thank you for all your advice

"Anyway my other neighbour insists on leaving the security gate open"
Like HappyHammy, my first though was 'that'll invalidate the insurance'.

I know nothing about CCTV so can't offer anything there.

Maybe post on one of the other boards with more traffic? AIBU to install CCTV?

We have two of these. Brilliant cameras, they are easy to set up and send notifications to your phone .Theres sound too and good night time visibility

Blink XT2 | Outdoor/Indoor Smart Security Camera with Cloud Storage, 2-Way Audio, 2-Year Battery Life | Add on Camera for existing Blink customers https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07MN65X2G/ref=cmswwrcppapiii_Zps0EbWMS8VM4

Thanks everyone for your advice . Much appreciated

By the way, in one rented place, some tenants put the standard cctv warning signs in their windows, and one person could fix cheap dummy cameras without leaving a trace, apart from a faint (filled) screwhole mark on the pointing, so landlords would have nothing to complain about. It seemed to fool people.

P.S...... ..seemed to fool people to assume it was real cctv