A break-in at your home can be an upsetting, disturbing and frightening experience.
Often, it’s not only the stolen belongings that are upsetting. A break-in can result in the loss of sentimental and irreplaceable items and also destroy your feeling of safety in your home.
It’s therefore important to keep yourself safe, and to keep your home secure against intruders. What follows are our best tips for how to do this.
Conceal Your Valuables
The easiest and most effective way to keep you and your belongings safe is to make it seem like you have nothing of value worth stealing. If a burglar thinks that there’s nothing worth stealing in your home, then they’re not going to bother with the hassle of trying to break in.
So, the first basic rule, and one you probably already know, is to keep all valuables well out of sight. Keep your curtains or blinds closed to conceal TVs, expensive gadgets or computers.
Keep your car keys out of sight and unreachable from the letterbox. (Some robbers have been known to lift keys from hallway tables by reaching in through the letterbox with a long hook!)
Think Like a Burglar
Have a little wander around the outside of your home and view your property through the eyes of a burglar. If you can spot an opportunity or an incentive, so will they.
Appearances are important. If your home makes a burglar think ‘these people are on top of their security,’ then they’re going to look for an easier target.
Keep your burglar alarm visible, keep your doors and windows looking well looked after, and keep your house and garden looking tidy. A messy, untidy or dishevelled home can mean burglars fancy their chances of getting in.
Useful Tips and Tricks
There are plenty of little tips and tricks to deter burglars and secure your home against intruders. Here are a few that you might not have considered:
- Make friends with your neighbours! Nosey neighbours aren’t always a bad thing… if those who live around you know your friends and family, they’ll be much more able to spot an unfamiliar face near your home.
- Don’t leave tools or ladders hanging around your home. If burglars get their hands on them, they can use them to access your home. Likewise, keep your shed locked to prevent access to anything which might aid a break-in.
- Keep your home secure when you’re on holiday by installing timer lights, putting the radio on a timer switch too, cancel the milk deliveries and ask a trusted neighbour to gather your post off the mat every couple of days and keep an eye out. If a burglar discovers that you’re on holiday by peering through the letterbox to find a mountain of post, you become a target.
- Don’t label your keys with your address! So many people do this… and if you lose those keys, anyone who finds them knows exactly where you live.
- Keep bushes and shrubbery trimmed. Anything that is tall or overgrown can be used to hide behind, or aid access to upper floors.
Please consider the steps above when securing your home against intruders. The more deterrents you can put in place, the better.
Don’t forget, you can always call us for some no obligation advice.
