They say your home should be your castle, so why not offer it the same level of security as one? Sure, you may not be able to dig moats, raise 5-floor tall walls or get yourself a fleet of knights in metal armours, but 2021 has some more convenient security systems that you can set up to make your home feel safe.
The UK police department states that homes with little to no security systems in place are five times more likely to be targeted by burglars, which causes not only financial stress but also emotional distress. After all, your home is not just the place where you eat and go to sleep. This is where you keep your values, and this is where your loved ones should feel protected and safe.
If you don’t want to let burglars steal your sense of security, it’s time to start taking action. Don’t know where to start? Follow our list of advice below to increase your home’s safety and avoid falling victim to burglars.
Start by assessing your home’s security
While it is true there are lots of opportunistic burglars looking for a chance to break into a random home, it is also common for them to monitor the property a few days prior to the burglary to learn the homeowner’s schedule and plan the perfect moment to hit.
To avoid this, it is important that you start thinking like the enemy and evaluate your home’s security level from a burglar’s perspective. Here are some questions you can ask yourself in order to properly assess the situation:
- Do you leave doors or windows open? If so, are they easily accessible?
- Do you have visible locks on the doors and windows?
- Are you used to leaving a spare key somewhere near the front door?
- Is there something like gravel or metal elements that can make entering the house nosier and potentially discourage thieves?
- Are your annexes or garage locked and secured? Do they provide access to the house as well?
Develop simple home safety habits
After properly assessing your home and taking all measures to hinder unwanted access to your home, it is time for you and your family to become proactive and implement some simple habits that create an extra level of safety.
The good thing about these habits is that they are easy to pick up and, in no time, they will become second nature. Here are just a few things to get you started:
- Always lock doors and windows when you leave home.
- If you have a house alarm, set it when you leave and during the night.
- Get to know your neighbours for an extra set of protective eyes watching over when you are not at home.
- Keep the yard clean and vegetation trimmed to show the house is inhabited and avoid providing free camouflage to burglars.
- Make sure the front and back doors are well lit.
- Assess your doors and windows periodically, looking for signs of deterioration that may jeopardize safety.
Invest in a good home security system
Sensors in a home security alarm generally work when a door or window is opened. This sort of home security system often includes an interior motion sensor as well as video surveillance. As soon as someone enters the house, authorities will most likely be notified that there is some suspicious activity going on.
According to home security experts at 247cctv.co.uk, these alerts usually draw a lot of attention, so neighbours will most likely peek out their windows to see what was causing the alarm to go off, and surveillance cameras would record the burglar’s face. Even if they manage to flee the scene, they can be tracked down and brought forward.
It’s easy to see why security systems are so effective in deterring crime when you consider this. The expense of a home security system is the sole disadvantage, but when you consider the long-term benefits, the investment is more than worth it.
It may also be worth installing signs and stickers that mention your property is monitored. This type of signage is shown to discourage burglars before they even bother to check if your security system is actually functional.
Install high-quality locks
Although this may seem obvious, many people don’t realize more than a third of all thieves enter through the front door. And, did you know that roughly a third of all burglaries occur through an unsecured door or window? That’s why it’s critical that your home renovation items be thoroughly tested to ensure that they reach industry standards.
Upgraded windows and doors are an excellent method to significantly increase home security, so search for windows and doors with PAS 24 standard locking systems. PAS 24 is a more stringent security standard that examines whether windows and doors can resist a series of tests that keep attackers out for a certain length of time.
Be more private on social media
The majority of burglaries are perpetrated by burglars that live in the neighbourhood or are tipped off by someone who lives nearby. With this in mind, avoid oversharing photos from vacation to social networking sites, since this will alert prospective burglars about your absence. Although certain social media settings can be made private, ask yourself if you should trust every ‘friend’ you have on Facebook. If the answer is no, don’t expose your house to assault with your holiday photos galore; instead, share them once you’ve returned from your vacation.
Using social media to brag about new purchases puts your house at risk as well, since it gives criminals a list of things to search for. Avoid displaying automobile registration plates, photographs of the door number and street name, papers that expose personal data, and attractive things like new jewellery, costly electronic equipment, and vehicles to reduce your chance of becoming a target.
Furthermore, certain house insurance plans have been known to pay out less or not at all if your home is broken into as a result of over-sharing, so you should keep this in mind as well.
