Images by artist Steve Rusell to be used to deter thefts
Pictures of swimming pools have been painted onto the ground leading up to cash points in a novel bid to combat snatch thieves and shoulder surfers from standing near cash-machine users.
Each image has a focus point – like a diving-board or a rubber-ring – for bank customers to stand on while they take cash out.
The images create a visual deterrent for would-be thieves, according to the Police, and the system is now being piloted at the NatWest ATM's on Lyric Square and the RBS machines inside Hammersmith Broadway shopping centre.
Councillor Greg Smith, H&F Council Cabinet Member for Residents’ Services, says: “We are always excited to try out new ways of fighting crime and hopefully these trials will lead to a sharp decline in local cash point crime.”
The images were created by artist Steve Russell and were paid for by businesses in the town centre. The trials are believed to be the first in Britain.
Matthew John, from Hammersmith BID a government funded agency, says: “Too often people feel threatened when withdrawing their cash, concerned that someone might be looking over their shoulder and attempting to steal their PIN number. An innovative and positive solution to this is bank machine safe zones – which make it harder for potential thieves to get close enough without being noticed.”
October 11, 2010