How to Prevent Break-ins While You’re Traveling
It’s every traveler’s worst nightmare: someone catches wind that you’re going to be away from home for some time and strikes when your house is vulnerable. Then. you come back from your travel only to find out that you’ve been cleaned out.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, home burglaries have declined in the United States, which is good news! However, financial losses on household burglaries have steadily increased over a 17 year period, with appliances and electronics as priorities for home intruders. This means that you stand to lose much more financially if your home happens to be robbed.
Fortunately, there are plenty of high and low-tech ways to deter would-be burglars, or even catch them in the act if it comes to it. Let’s go over some of the ways you can protect yourself and your home.
Common Sense Safeguards
As you’ve probably heard, most burglaries are crimes of opportunity. The harder you make it to break into your home, the less likely you’ll be robbed when you’re away. Before you leave, make sure all of your doors and windows are locked and well secured. Keep expensive items out of plain sight. Nothing screams “rob me” like a flat screen TV sitting by the window. It also helps to have thick foliage trimmed back around your house and to have your property well-lighted, as it makes it harder for burglars to lurk around your property.
Hopefully, you’re friendly with your neighbors. If not, get to know some and have them keep an eye on things. If someone is picking up your mail and newspapers, it’s less obvious that you’re away. You can also keep up appearances by leaving lights on in the house or having them automatically timed to switch on after dark. Even if you can’t install a security system at the moment, you can simply place a sign stating that your home is protected by a certain security company. This simple tactic has been shown to immediately deter intruders.
Enhanced Security
If you really want to safeguard your house, there are a number of high-tech security solutions available that can greatly reduce the threat of break-ins. Alarm systems work to keep all entries into your house secure and if an unwelcome visitor enters your house, security agencies and emergency response teams can be alerted right away. As an added benefit, alarm systems make excellent deterrents, and most burglars won’t bother if they sense one is installed.
There are also sophisticated camera systems that you can set up around your property, such as motion activated cameras that can be remotely accessed via smartphone. For extra protection, you can set up personal spy cameras too, which will keep watch on your property via everyday objects. If someone does break in, you’re more likely to catch them in the act and recoup your losses.
Protect Your Home
As we mentioned earlier, property crimes are down in the US, but financial losses are up, so it definitely pays off to protect yourself financially and secure your house while you travel. The common sense measures we noted are inexpensive and easy to implement. However SafeWise and other news outlets have noted that security systems are very effective at deterring burglars, and considering the stakes it would pay off to implement them. Thanks to modern technologies, you can get high-quality alarm and camera systems at reasonable prices today. Good luck, safe travels, and invest in your home’s safety today!
Author Bio:
Amy Trotter is a freelance writer with experience in home security and personal protection. Amy is an avid technophile who is always keeping up on the latest security gadgets, especially ones that can help her ensure the daily safety of her family.
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