Taking a well-earned summer vacation with your family should be a time of great joy. However, far too many Americans return home to find that their home has been burglarized. Thieves are cunning, and career criminals go to great lengths to ensure that the homes they violate are empty. Taking some precautions before you leave will fool would-be burglars into thinking you may still be at home. Deterring thieves will protect your possessions and also reduce your home or renters insurance premiums.
Make Your Home Appear Occupied
There are some quick and simple ways to create the illusion that your home is occupied when you're on vacation. Leave prominent lights switched on and partially draw your curtains to obscure the view from outside. If you're planning a long vacation, you may have to take extra steps. Enlist the help of neighbors to open curtains, pick up your mail and switch on lights at random intervals. If you can't trust your neighbors, there are some cheap time-delay switches on the market that will perform these tasks for you. Make sure you don't organize any deliveries that could arrive when you're away; your failure to answer the door will be a sure sign that you're not home. Cancel any daily deliveries of newspapers, and if possible, arrange for your local Post Office to hold on to your mail until your return. If you have a garden, it may be a good idea to arrange to have your lawn mowed regularly; overgrown weeds and grass could give your absence away.
Security Features
Double check that all windows and doors are locked before you leave. A lot of thieves gain access to property via a garage, so lock it securely and ensure that the access door to the main property is fitted with a secure deadbolt. The majority of standard locking devices on windows are not fit for this purpose. Arranging for a local locksmith to perform a full inspection of your home will identify potential areas of unauthorized access. This can be more expensive upfront, but it's also a small price to pay in the long run if it protects your home and keeps your insurance premiums as low as possible. If your home has sliding glass doors, arrange for a special lock to be fitted and consider installing strengthened glass.
Your home provides you with shelter and is also your place of refuge and safety. It's somewhere you should feel completely safe. Taking a few precautions before you leave on vacation will give you peace of mind in knowing that your home is as safe and secure as possible. Those precautions could also mean your home insurance premiums are kept to an absolute minimum.
If you are looking for advice on home security or Rancho Cucamonga home insurance, call Silver Coast Insurance now at 855-323-3600, and one of our agents will be happy to discuss your circumstances in detail.