Protect your home from intruders
Most of us love the summer months: the heat, the light and the chances to spend more time outdoors. Summer also means school holidays, trips to the beach and flights to far off places.
Unfortunately, the long evenings often produce something we don’t always welcome, burglaries! Burglars seize the opportunities that are presented by summery conditions. The summer is a peak time for burglaries; figures indicate that crime rates increase by around ten percent in June, July and August. But why?
Security Hotspots
Summer is the season in which most people are likely to take their annual holiday, meaning that homes are left completely vacant for days at a time. Often, homeowners don’t take sensible precautions, and it’s all too obvious that they’ve disappeared for a week or longer.
Even when we’re at home, windows and doors are more likely to be left open through the day and at night. Unfortunately, a window that is open even a couple of centimetres is an invitation to a burglar looking for access to a secluded room.
We also get lazy about home security when we spot people in the garden, or stop for a chat. A huge number of burglaries take place when the home’s occupants are only a few dozen yards away.
People also tend to move house in the summer months, and many of them will be unfamiliar with the area. It can take time to get used to a new routine, meaning the first few months after moving can be a vulnerable time.
Some Tips on How You Can Keep Safe
If you are planning to spend a couple of weeks away, make sure you let someone know about your travel plans – a trusted friend or neighbour. Give them a key so they can go into your house and open or close curtains. Ask them to remove accumulating mail from the letterbox, giving the impression that someone is at home.
Add timers to lights, ensuring they switch on and off throughout the evening. You can also place timers on radios or TV sets, assuming they don’t go into standby.
There may be a temptation to upload snaps of your holiday to social media websites. Try to avoid this. You are advertising the fact that your home is unoccupied.
A good quality alarm system is a must to keep your home secure when it is empty for a few days at a time. Make sure it has been serviced, and leave the reset code and servicing telephone numbers with a trusted friend.
Obtain and Install a Security System
Installing a reliable security system is perhaps the single most important aspect of home security, and not just for summer. Burglars prefer easy targets, and if your home is protected by a security system it is three times less likely to be broken into than one without.
If you’re serious about protecting your home, then the installation of a reliable security system is a given. Speak to Angel Security about the best system to protect your home.
