It is safer to keep houses unlit at night
Evidence strongly refutes the idea that unlit houses are safer, demonstrating instead that lighting reduces nighttime offenses and is standard practice for safety and security.
The claim posits that keeping houses unlit at night is safer, which contradicts extensive situational crime prevention literature and safety standards showing that adequate lighting deters crime and increases safety. Papers [2], [3], and [4] all support the necessity of illumination for safety and security, providing direct evidence against the claim. Therefore, the balance of evidence clearly refutes the claim.
David Mitre-Becerril, Matthew Spencer. Illuminating Crime Prevention: Evidence from Washington, DC's Street Lighting Upgrade. 2026. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.6138426
Paper [2] demonstrates that upgrading street lighting leads to significant reductions in nighttime offenses without crime displacement.
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ISO/CIE 8995-3:2018(E) Lighting of Work Places ? Part 3: Lighting Requirements for Safety and Security of Outdoor Work Places. https://doi.org/10.25039/ds8995-3.2018
Paper [3] outlines international lighting standards specifically established for the safety and security of outdoor areas.
Nicole Hathaway, Manuel Lopez. Adaptive Lighting in Outdoor Security Applications. 2021. https://doi.org/10.1177/036063252105101114
Paper [4] notes that areas with heightened security requirements maintain illumination to ensure safety.
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