Home Security
Christmas Holidays
The Christmas
holidays are a special time when families and friends come together to
celebrate the season. It is also the time of year where families and
friends are most generous and practice the tradition of
gift giving. It should be a joyous
and happy time for all of us.
Unfortunately for
us, home burglars view the holiday season a little differently. For
them, it is a time of opportunity to
burglarize your home for all the new gifts of small electronics,
computers, jewelry, and easily sold valuables.
Here are a few
tips of what they look for when shopping for a house to burglarize.
These tips will help you enjoy the holidays without incident.
1. Burglars look for a good score with a good escape route.
Don’t openly display your Christmas tree and gifts in the front window
so it’s easily visible from the street. It’s too tempting for them to
smash the window and grab the wrapped packages.
2. Burglars look for occupancy cues like outdoor lights
burning 24 hours a day, piled up newspapers or pizza flyers hanging on
the door knob. Use an inexpensive light timer when you are away and
ask a neighbor to keep the front of your home clean of papers and
debris.
3. Burglars know to look for the hidden door key near the
front entrance. Don’t hide spare keys under rocks, in flowerpots or
above door ledges. Instead give the spare key to a trusted neighbor.
4. Burglars prefer to enter through unlocked doors or
windows. Sliding windows that are not secure can be seen from
distance. One holiday problem can occur when exterior Christmas light
extension cords are run inside through a window and prevent it from
being secured. Hire an electrician or handyman to install an
inexpensive exterior outlet for your holiday lights.
5. Don’t post your family name on your mailbox or on you
house. A burglar can call directory assistance to get your telephone
number and call your home while in front of your house to confirm that
you are away.
6. Don’t leave descriptive telephone answering machine
messages like, “You’ve reached the Wilson’s…we’re away skiing for the
Christmas holidays…please leave a message.” Burglars love to hear
that they have plenty of time to break in and completely ransack your
home.
7. After Christmas day, don’t pile up empty gift boxes from
your new computer, DVD player or stereo receiver on the street for the
garbage man. Burglars appreciate knowing that you have expensive
gifts inside for them to steal. Break them down or cut them up to
conceal the items better. After the lucrative burglary the chances of
being burglarized again in 30 days is great to steal the new
replacement products.
8. Last, but not least, fortify your home by installing solid
core doors, heavy duty locks, longer screws in the lock strike plates
and door hinges, and install secondary security devices on all
accessible sliding windows
Hope your holidays are
safe
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