Household burglary is on the rise and the police will tell you that homes with no security measures in place are far more likely to be burgled than those with security devices. Although the common belief is that most burglaries take place at night, in fact, burglars are opportunist thieves and usually make a move on a property when it is empty and this is as likely to be during the day as it is at night.
Although you can never be totally sure that your home is a secure fortress and totally burglar proof, there are a number of preventative actions that you can take which will deter all but the most determined thief:
Make sure all of your doors are secured with five lever mortice deadlocks and check they conform to the current British Standard (3621).
- Avoid glazed panels or replace them with toughened or laminated glass.
- Fit a spy hole – never open the door to unsolicited callers. Check their identity if they state they are from a legitimate organisation (electricity/gas etc.). Keep the chain on during any conversation.
Always lock your doors every time you leave the house, even if you are only close by. Fit window locks, with keys, to all downstairs windows and those upstairs that are easy to reach.
Hide all keys, including your car keys, out of sight. Make sure they are always well away from the letterbox (remember a device could be used to hook keys through the letterbox) even if you are only popping in briefly. Never leave your door key in the lock on the inside.
Keep small valuables well out of sight of windows – wallets, phones, iPods, tablets and laptops are some of the most common targets. Easy to carry and easy to sell on!
Keep larger sums of money and valuable jewellery locked in a secure safe. Make sure that the safe is fixed to a solid surface.
Install a visual burglar alarm – If possible use alarm monitoring. People seem to increasingly ignore alarms going off. Any experienced burglar will wait ten minutes or so to watch for any nearby reaction. A monitoring system will notify the emergency services of the break in.
Install good outside lighting – Dark spots are far too helpful to the opportunistic burglar. Motion sensor lighting is good for letting you know if there is anyone lurking around after dark.
Keep shrubbery trimmed to reduce hiding areas, particularly close to the house.
Make sure the fences around your garden are in good condition and that side gates are kept locked to prevent rear access.
Install perimeter detectors if possible.
Keep ladders and tools stored away; don't leave them outside where they could be used to break into your home. A burglar rarely arrives armed with tools. Generally, they use anything useful that they find lying around. Make sure your wheelie bin is secured to something solid and away from access points. They can be climbed upon for access or used for taking your property away.
Mark your property with your postcode and house number – make it too difficult to sell on. Take a photograph of anything really valuable. You will be able to prove ownership more easily should the item be recovered.
Register your valuable property for free with Immobilize: https://www.immobilise.com/
Join a Neighbourhood Watch scheme. If there isn’t a local one then form one. http://www.ourwatch.org.uk/
Never discuss your holiday plans on social media - burglars are adept at working out when your property will be empty.
When you are going to be away on holiday take some precautions:
- Put some lights and even the TV/Radio on a timer to make the house look occupied.
- Cancel any deliveries of milk or newspapers.
- Ask a neighbour to take remove your post from the doormat. If this is not feasible then Royal Mail offer a service where they will keep your mail for up to 2 months. http://www.royalmail.com/personal/receiving-mail/keepsafe
Many of these tips are simply common sense but it does no harm to review exactly how secure your home is. After all, no one wants to arrive home and find that their home has been ransacked and their prized possessions removed. There may be additional benefits to investigating better security devices for your property, because many insurance companies offer discounts to houses with quality alarms in place.
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