Findings from a Wakefield Research study done for Comcast, revealed that nearly all people surveyed (97 percent) would install a home security camera if they had one — with 44 percent indicating they would hire a professional to install it. About one-fourth of respondents (24 percent) said they would install it completely by themselves; while 21 percent said they would install it with the help of a friend or family member, and 8 percent said they would ask a friend or family member to install it on their own. Only 4 percent admitted they would probably never get around to installing it.
The Xfinity Home from Comcast Survey was conducted by Wakefield Research (www.wakefieldresearch.com) among 1,000 U.S. adults, aged 18 and older, who live in a house or townhome, between Nov. 15 and Nov. 16, 2017, using an email invitation and an online survey. The main center of the study — done in anticipation of the 2017 holiday shopping season — was the respondents’ experiences with package theft and how they thought it could be deterred.
The study found that three in 10 Americans (30 percent) who live in houses or townhomes have been victims of package theft. And 53 percent of Americans know someone who has had a package stolen from outside their home.
When asked, “Which of the following smart devices, if any, do you think would be most useful during the holidays?” the single most frequently cited answer by respondents was “video doorbell to see who is visiting,” chosen by 37 percent; followed by “live streaming home security camera, to monitor my home in real-time,” selected by 35 percent; and then “home security camera, to record short clips of motion,” chosen by 33 percent of the respondents.
Many Americans — especially millennials — are open to allowing packages to be delivered inside their homes with the right security: Nearly one-third (32 percent) of Americans who live in houses or townhomes would allow packages to be delivered inside their homes if they had a live streaming home security camera and/or smart door locks to remotely lock and unlock their doors. Millennials are especially open to that idea, with nearly half (47 percent) reporting they would allow in-home delivery, compared with just 17 percent of baby boomers. City dwellers are very open to that idea, with 44 percent indicating that they would allow packages to be delivered inside their homes.
“There is no silver-bullet solution for the package theft problem,” said Daniel Herscovici, senior vice president and general manager of Xfinity Home, the total home security and automation solution from Comcast. “Comcast’s Xfinity Home’s smart home security cameras may serve as a deterrent to would-be thieves. The data we’re seeing bears that out, with 85 percent of Americans saying a home security camera would be effective in stopping package theft this holiday season. A whopping 90 percent of Americans who have actually been the victim of package theft are confident in the effectiveness of home security cameras.”
