Museums urged to take steps to prevent crime following Louvre theft

The theft of priceless Napoleonic jewellery from the world’s most visited museum, in broad daylight, has captured the attention of people across the world, with the raid seemingly straight out of a Hollywood studio rather than real life.

As police in France continue their investigations, Ecclesiastical Insurance is reminding properties with priceless collections and fine art that they need to take steps to protect themselves, with a number of properties having been targeted in the UK in recent years.

The protection of heritage premises and artefacts needs a combination of physical and electronic security of the premises and items on display, and Ecclesiastical’s risk management team has developed specific guidance on how to protect museums and heritage properties from smash and grab attacks, including:

• Try to locate portable valuable items away from the building perimeter, as far from external doors and windows as possible. The further into a property thieves have to go, the longer it will take them and the greater the risk of detection.
• Where valuables are out on display to members of the public, house them in security-designed, attack-resistant display cabinets. Laminated/security glazing should be used, and cabinet frames, locks, and hinges should be designed to resist physical attacks.
• If virtual tours of a property are included on websites, avoid including the location of electronic security measures, such as intruder alarms and CCTV systems, which could be used to inform a planned attack.
• Review perimeter security arrangements. Restrict vehicular access to the site and locate any designated parking as far from the main property as possible. The further thieves have to travel on foot, the greater the risk of detection and the less they can carry away with them.
• Watch out for visitors acting suspiciously. Behaviour such as walking speedily through some rooms but lingering in front of particular exhibits, studying nearby windows and doors, and looking for electronic security measures such as closed-circuit television and intruder alarm detectors may be indicative of attack planning.
• Electronic security measures should be reviewed alongside physical security arrangements. Consider the installation of an intruder alarm system to aid early detection of unauthorised access if not already fitted. Where fitted, review existing coverage to ensure the system adequately covers potential access points into the property and target areas where there is a concentration of valuables.

Smash and grab attacks are usually carried out at speed as thieves aim to get in and out of a property as quickly as possible. They often involve the use of extreme force to break in, causing serious damage in the process.

These burglaries are often carefully planned and target easy-to-move, high-value items that may be stolen to order or broken down and sold to unscrupulous buyers.

In September 2019, a gang of five sledgehammer-wielding thieves drove two vehicles through the gates of the 18th-century Blenheim Palace before smashing their way into the building with sledgehammers and stealing a £4.75m gold toilet from an art exhibition.

Arundel Castle was targeted in 2021 when historic artefacts, including a set of gold rosary beads carried by Mary Queen of Scots at her execution, were stolen by burglars using ladders to enter the property and smash glass cabinets to grab the items.

Earlier this month, Bronze Age gold jewellery was stolen from St Fagans National Museum of History in Cardiff. CCTV captured thieves smashing their way into the museum shortly after midnight on Monday, 6 October – taking just four minutes inside the building, another case where forward planning had been employed. Two men have subsequently been arrested.

View our smash-and-grab risk guidance.