Burglaries & Gassings of Villas, Rentals and Hotels

Whilst burglary of luxury apartments and villas in the region are nothing new, statistics of crime rates throughout the French Riviera provide unpleasant reading. According to the latest government statistics (from the département des Alpes-Maritimes / French Riviera region), break-ins amount to almost half of reported crime, and within one year there has been an overall increase of 8% in robberies on the French Riviera. This includes a total of 48 armed robberies and a further 1,545 “unarmed” robberies, plus all the unreported robberies.

A security expert working in the south of France told the Daily Star: “I would say around 90% of villa raids out here go unreported”, and the National Institute for Security and Justice estimated that 56% of break-ins go unreported. It’s the same situation with hotel room robberies. And when they are reported, they’re often swept under the rug, with hotel booking websites removing reviews that mention burglaries, and both the police and hotel or villa owners telling the victim that there’s nothing they can do.

Criminals commonly break in at night and use gas to sedate their victims before entering their villa or hotel suite (if they can enter via a terrace or balcony). It is thought the use of chemical gas in these raids goes under-reported because it is not obvious they have been targeted in this way.