Nobody likes the feeling of insecurity that can come when there aren't enough lights and you find yourself walking through a gloomy alley or sitting in the dark outside.
The Southern Reporter has illustrated this in recent news that residents around Kelso's Shedden Park in Scotland are urging the authorities to install lighting along a pathway through the park - a popular route for inhabitants walking into the centre of the town - so they can feel safer during the hours of darkness.
Nevertheless, town councillors and local authorities have been disputing the £22,000 bill of carrying out the lighting project, suggesting that there may be alternatives.
Lighting up the outside of homes and businesses, however, need not cost tens of thousands of pounds and can provide invaluable security benefits. It goes without saying that good quality outdoor lights may help to put off troublemakers who like to carry out their bidding by the cover of darkness - activities which could end up costing people far more than a few extra lights.
Not only that but it can provide comfort to people who may feel more secure with improved lighting outside, such as the residents of properties around Shedden Park. While the summer months and longer days are well and truly upon us meaning that it tends to be light when people both arrive at and leave the home and office, during the winter months individuals may hugely appreciate some porch lights or outdoor lighting to make them feel that little bit safer.
Furthermore, people don't need to worry about the cost of the energy usage of running lights incessantly throughout the hours of darkness, as motion sensor technology can enable lights to only become operational when they are actually needed.
With new figures by Aviva showing that the British summertime sees a 20 per cent surge in shed and garages thefts - rising to almost 30 per cent in July and August - it really isn't worth property-owners being left in the dark.
