|
You can reduce the risk of your home being burgled by taking easy steps including:
- Locking all windows and doors in your home
- Reducing the signs that you are not home e.g. cancelling newspapers and milk etc
- Leaving a light on at night with the curtains drawn if you are going out
- Padlocking gates etc
- Locking away tools and ladders that make it easy to break in
Often house burglaries are committed by opportunity thieves. Generally opportunistic burglars like to be in and out of a property very quickly. They are also easily put off by additional security as they prefer to find another house to steal from.
Often spending money on home security is a good investment for the following reasons
- It can reduce your home insurance premium
- Will save you time and effort negotiating with an insurance company
- Will save you your excess, which can be a considerable amount of money
And that’s without even considering the aggravation, insecurity and loss of irreplaceable personal items such as jewellery etc.
To improve your home security you should do a quick audit of your home’s security. Think like a burglar to understand your properties weak spots. Have a good look for:
- Old inadequate locks
- Hidden areas of your home where a thief could break in unseen
- Outbuildings and garages
- What visual deterrents are there at your home – security lights, an alarm, CCTV etc
Here are a few areas to consider improving your homes security
Front Door
Add additional locks and security to your front door and install a device to enable you to see who is there. CCTV is great for this especially if it is constantly recording as most burglars are shy creatures and have no desire to be on TV. If not a simple door viewer will help you to identify the person you are opening the door to.
More about External Door Security
Garden accessibility
 Often gardens in new builds tend to be open plan with low fences and walls. A hedge or taller fence with trellis can be a good first defence to put off a burglar getting close to your property. Although a low fence that removes a hiding space in a front garden can be a good deterrent as burglars don’t like being seen. Fence guards may also be worth considering as they can put off an intruder from clibming over a fence
Porch
Often porches are dark places and create good hiding places for burglars. Installing an automatic or low energy light in a porch can help deter a burglar.
PIR Flood Lights
Back doors, conservatory doors or side doors
Lighting, improved locks and even CCTV will improve the security of these vulnerable areas
Garage doors
Integral garages often have internal doors for easy access. Whilst garage doors are often noisy to open the security on them is not as good as a front door for example. Consider fitting additional locks, in addition you should treat the door between your garage and the house as an external door with a good lock etc.
Sheds and out buildings
An unlocked shed is an open invitation to a thief. Locks for sheds will help and only cost a few pounds. Further security can be achieved by improving the lighting around your shed, a shed alarm, CCTV. If you have an alarm for your home it may be worth considering adding your sheds and outbuildings.
Be security conscious
There are a few things that some homeowners do that really help a thief. These include:
- Leaving keys in flower pots, under the mat, under a brick etc. Burglars know all the places you would think of and more
- Leaving your house keys or car keys by the front door – a stick with a hook will be more than enough to get them out through a letter box. With improved security for cars, car thieves often will break into your home to steal your keys. Imagine how you would feel to come home to find that a burglar has stolen your valuables and used your own car to escape. A claim on both your car insurance and home insurance, two excesses to pay adds to the cost of the break in even more.
- Not cancelling deliveries when away – a paper sticking out of a letterbox, old milk give a clear sign that a house is empty
Valuables
Safes can now be purchased for around £30 - £50 and will help reduce the risk of losing your valuables if you are broken in to. Key safes are also a good idea to limit and slow down a burglar from accessing your entire house.
|
