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25 July 2017

Five ways to secure your home while you’re on holiday

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It’s that time of year again! Sea, sun and securing your home; maybe not your typical list, but this really should be the third thing you think about before you jet off! As we approach mid-summer, we’re in full holiday flow, organising last minute excursions, buying currency and perhaps organising who will look after the pets. But, before you go, here are 5 ways to help secure your home while you’re away on holiday.

Lock your windows, as well as your doors!

On these warmer summer nights, it’s easy to leave a window open and although it may be simple, it can catch many people out when they’re getting ready to leave their home. One way to avoid leaving windows open can be to make a check list when you’re heading off on holiday and double check that you’ve not left one open. Another simple thing you can do if you want to make sure your property has some air moving through it is to put your windows on vent, but try and make sure that you do this on windows which aren’t obvious. 

Make your house looked lived in

A top tip to deter an incident occurring is to make your house look lived in, as it will give the illusion that house is not empty. One way you can do this is to use timers on your plugs to turn on lights or appliances. Set your lights to come on in the evening so that your home looks occupied. If you can, leave a car in the driveway or ask a friend to move your car every few days as this will deter any opportunists.

Alert your neighbours if you’ll be away

Alerting your neighbours that you will be away, means that you feel more secure as you know that within your local area people will be looking out for you and watching your property. Leave a spare key and your phone number with a neighbour you trust or a friend/family member who lives close by. Another thing you can do if you have pets is to get a pet sitter who will visit your home to feed your animals.

External lighting and outdoor security

Purchasing external security lighting is a great way to secure your house, these sensor-based lights can be triggered by movement around your property. If you’ve made your neighbours aware that you are away then lights triggering outside your property will highlight any movement outside your property. Another way to protect your home from the outside is to install connected cameras which can be accessed via a mobile app, these include the Canary Flex or the Nest IQ.

Stop your post of deliveries

Post building up in the letterbox or doorway is a sure-fire way for people to see that you’re not there to collect your mail. There are a few things you can do to stop this happening. Firstly, ensure that you don’t order anything to arrive while you’re away, cancel any subscriptions or magazines that would be delivered during the time you’re away. Lastly, you can contact the Post Office to suspend your post with Keepsafe while you’re away.

One thing you must always have is a working burglar alarm and that it is properly set. Finally, if you’re really unsure about leaving your home you can ask a close friend or member of the family to house sit for you, it will give you full peace of mind whilst you’re away and many people are very happy to do this for you when you’re away!

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