Our friends at the Amherst Police department have some great advice for all of us to stay safe, keep our family safe, and keep our home safe.
Here are their seven important tips.
- Keep your vacation plans a secret – Don’t post anything to your Facebook, Twitter or any other social media outlet about your vacation plans. It is hard to keep track of who is reading those Tweets and you don’t want to give the bad guys the green light that no one is home for a week. Do not tell a lot of people in person either. There is no way to tell who is listening.
- Ask a friend to help out – have a reliable friend keep an eye on your house. They can take care of a few weekly things like taking the trash out, watering the flowers and cutting the grass. You can even invite that trusted friend to stay at your place.
- Stop mail delivery – If you can’t find a reliable person to stay at your house or pick up your mail you should put a “stop” on your mail. If you get the newspaper delivered put a stop on that as well. Nothing is more obvious that no one is home when the driveway has a pile of old newspapers on it.
- Put lights on timers – Going on vacation and leaving lights on the whole time does not make much sense and will make for a costly light bill. Besides, no one is going to keep lights on all day and night long. The best thing to get is a light switch timer. These timers turn your lights on and off automatically according to a program schedule. Motion detector lights are also a way to deter burglars. Another cool item to consider is a TV simulator light – this special light makes it look like you have the TV on at night!
- Keep curtains the same – Some people say to keep curtains closed while away so no one can peer into the house. Some people say to leave them open so neighbors can see if someone has broken into the house. The best advice is to keep your curtains the way you normally would have them on any other given day. It’s important to keep expensive items like jewelry and cash out of sight so you are not giving burglars a reason to break into your house.
- Disable your automatic garage door – If you have a garage it is a good idea to disable the garage door opener. Some burglars have tools to easily decode your garage or use universal garage door openers to get in. Having it disabled will make it harder for thieves to get in.
- Do a last minute lock check/ remove spare keys – Before leaving give all the doors and windows a lock check before you go. It seems very obvious but many forget to lock windows which give thieves an easy way in. And while you’re at it, remove that spare key. That little fake rock right next to the front door is not a good hiding spot for your spare key. If you have a spare key around your house remove it before you leave. It is just another good step to take to keep your house safe.
Easy steps for safety!
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