During 2024, Rias Home Insurance worked with charity The Blue Lamp Trust to install video doorbells in the homes of its older and more vulnerable customers in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.
The doorbells offer added security and peace of mind and were installed for free by the charity’s expert fitters.
Denise MacDonnell was one of the Hampshire residents to benefit from the project.
Reasons for wanting to install this type of technology vary, and for Denise the reason was simple: “You always think it is never going to happen to you.”
“But I’ve lived here for 2 years now and I had been thinking about it [a Ring Doorbell], so it was good timing”.
Denise was very pleased with the service she received.
She recalls: “I had a text message before [the fitter arrived] and I felt very safe with him, the man was superb. He installed the app on my phone and showed me how to use it. He even checked the boiler!”
In addition, the Bobby Scheme also offers a crime and fire prevention survey which in Denise’s case included the installation of two smoke alarms and a carbon monoxide detector.
Her daughter, who lives down the road, also has the corresponding app. Knowing she can easily access her mum’s doorbell camera has been reassuring.
Since having the Ring Doorbell installed, Denise says she has used it a lot.
Denise reports the scope of the camera extends to across the road and almost to both sides of the house, stating she was “surprised by how good the camera is.”
In conjunction with her sensored security light, she added: “I even saw a fox!”
During this initiative, customers received a free Ring Doorbell with a free 30-day basic subscription. Denise said: “I have been so impressed with it that I have subscribed.”
As Chief Customer Officer at Ageas, Caroline King said: “We've been happy to support the Blue Lamp Trust with this initiative, and it's great that our older and more vulnerable customers in Hampshire have been able to benefit from the increased security offered by doorbell cameras.”
The Blue Lamp Trust and its Bobby Scheme
Operating in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, the Blue Lamp Trust is a local charitable organisation to Ageas.
The charity is dedicated to promoting and enhancing community safety and through various initiatives such as the Bobby Scheme, they offer free home security and safety services to vulnerable and older people.
