Going on a vacation is a relaxing and stress-relieving escape from overwhelming work and the pressures of life. However, getting out of the city or the country for days or weeks can put your home at risk of burglary. Instead of making your stress go away, leaving your house unsecured gives you even more worries to think about.
Away on Vacation: How to Protect Your Home
To thoroughly relish your vacation, don’t just plan the travel itinerary and forget to plan ways of securing your house. Outsmart a burglar, keep your home secured, and enjoy the vacation.
Inside the House
There is a myriad of valuables in your bedroom, living room, kitchen, and even bathroom. Think like a criminal — think of things that will attract burglars.
- Keep all things that are easy to get one’s hand on out of sight. Thieves will make sure to spend as little time as they can. So, having valuable items left out in open and easy-to-spot areas will make it easy for them to be found.
- Cash is one of the things that thieves look for first. Money can not be reclaimed and the thieves will quickly get something out of it. Therefore, do not store cash in unsecured places like your drawers, side tables, small safes, or boxes.
- Electronics such as laptops, computers, tablets, and phones are usually left lying around. If you are going for a vacation, make sure you bring them or hide them safely. Use strong passwords and turn on the GPS on all these devices.
- Be creative. Do not store your valuables in the most obvious places, like in your sock drawers or cabinets. Instead, place them in cunning, unusual spots: books or photo frames with a secret compartment, fake wall outlets, inside the vase of a fake plant, sofa storages, and more. Among others, high-quality and secure safes are still one of the best options.
- Hide all items that contain your personal information. Thieves can do a lot of harm to you if such sensitive information is left out for them to find.
Windows and Doors
Burglars usually target easy points of entry. According to the research of Emily Patterson, a home security expert, the majority of burglars break in through doors and windows. In fact, the most common entry points are front doors. Thirty percent of burglars go through the front door in order to break into a home. The remaining points are backdoors (24%), first-floor windows (23%), and garage doors (9%). Most of the time, these doors are unlocked. Lock all your windows and doors and be sure to safeguard your backyard and garage. Doing so will significantly reduce the risk of burglary.
- Use privacy films on your windows. Thieves usually spy through windows because it offers a good view of the things inside your home. Using privacy film will prevent anyone from being able to see what’s inside your house from the outside.
- Install door and wall alarms. Even if you are not home, your neighbors will be alarmed when someone tries to break in. Thieves like to work incognito. Thus, installing these alarms will discourage them from breaking in once they trigger the alarm.
- Invest in smart lighting and motion sensor lamps. Through this, you can remotely control your house lighting even if you are away, making it seem like someone is in the house.
- Skilled burglars are equipped with the right tools that can easily access old-fashioned locks. Therefore, secure your windows with window grills and your doors with deadbolt locks.
- Burglars will force their way into your house by breaking windows and doors. Even if your windows are equipped with grills, items that are reachable and fit into the grills can be taken. Keep all valuable things out of reach.
- Before leaving the house, double and even triple-check if you have locked all the windows and doors.
- Make sure your CCTV cameras or wireless security cameras are working and that you can remotely control and watch them.
Yard and Garage
Items in your backyard and garage can also be a target for burglars. Therefore, keeping them inside your home before leaving would be best.
Think about possible hiding spots in your yard. Trim your foliage regularly to avoid thieves from possibly hiding in them and so neighbors can easily see when someone unfamiliar or suspicious is on your property.
Social media
Going on vacation is exciting. However, you should avoid posting about it online until after you’re back home. You don’t know who could be watching online. If a burglar sees that you are posting from somewhere far away, they would be aware that no one is at your house and take it as an opportunity to strike.
Ready to Go
Once you have done all the precautionary measures listed above, you can now have fun on your trip without worries. Staying vigilant and being proactive will protect your home and family not only when you are away but also in the long run.
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