Holiday Burglary Prevention Tips – 5 Dos and Don’ts

To a burglar, holidays present a huge window of opportunity. Your house will be empty for one or two weeks. Plenty of time to ransack the place while you’re off sunning yourself. So we’ve got some holiday burglary prevention tips to keep your home safe while you jet off!

It’s a sad fact that in the 21st century the internet is a tool for burglars. Friesland interviewed 50 convicted burglars and nearly 78% of the burglars said they used Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare to target victims.

As awful as that sounds, it’s something to combat!

This blog post helps you avoid coming home to find you’re a victim of burglary. These prevention tips cover five things you should avoid doing and five others you put in place to keep your home safe.

Holiday Burglary Prevention – Do not tell burglars you are on holiday

Obviously you won’t knowingly invite a burglar into your home while you are on holiday… or will you?

1 – Posting on social media before you go away

Counting down to your holidays should be done in your head. Or with friends at work. Broadcasting it on Facebook or Twitter is exactly that. Broadcasting.

Criminals use social media platforms to hunt for victims. And conveniently, social media users tell the world they are going on holiday!

Don’t. Do. It!

1a – don’t leave your calendar on view from a window. A burglar peeping in, scanning for things to steal, can see when you are away. He can make a note and return when you’re not there. That way he’ll be confident of a large window of opportunity.

2 – Checking-in at the Airport

When you’re at the airport excitement is high. Don’t be tempted to check-in anything other than your luggage.

According to research by Together Mutual Insurance, over 30 days in June and July 2017 lots of people told the world they were at an airport. In this period:

• 760,000 people checked in on Facebook at UK airports.
• 663,462 posts on Twitter that mentioned the Tweeter was at an airport.
• 68,000 Instagram posts tagged with a UK airport.

Criminals monitoring Social Media would have a field day with all of that. Obviously, don’t check-in at the airport!

3 – No photos at the airport either…

As boarding time arrives excitement peaks. Don’t be tempted to post anything that will give the game away. No posts of the runway, the aeroplane, eating or shopping at the airport, no boarding pass snaps or passports.

These all give away an impending holiday.

4 – Holiday snaps

We all love a holiday snap. And with smart phones we take more than ever in the 21st century. But don’t post them. John Terry fell foul of this while skiing. His home was ransacked following Instagram pics of him and the family on the slopes.

Don’t fall victim to the summer equivalent!

5 – What are the rest of your family/group doing?

Teens cannot be separated from their phones. But they need to be banned from posting their holiday snaps on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. This goes for anyone else in your travel group.

Group pics are particularly problematic. You can be tagged in these. And that could ruin all the good work you’ve done! Ban anyone from tagging you.

Holiday Burglary Prevention – Five things you can do to keep the burglars OUT

And so on the flip side, here’s what you can do to reduce the chances of coming back to a terrible burglary.

1 – Keep your holiday snaps on your phone until you are back

Before smart phones we had to wait for film to be developed. It could take weeks to see those holiday snaps. You need to pretend it is still like that and keep your snaps on your phone, until you are home.

Then post them in carefully curated albums with magnificent explanations. But do choose your word carefully. Make sure any nefarious reader is certain you are now home. Then you have your bases covered.

2 – Boost your Home Security

If your security is up to scratch, the burglar is likely to be put off. In the Friesland research mentioned earlier the same number of convicted burglars said a simple home alarm would have deterred them from targeting the property.

In other research, a panel of 12 former burglars consulted by Co-op Insurance rated CCTV as the top burglary deterrent. Protect your home with a modern Home Security system.

3 – Get good locks

The Master Locksmiths Association suggests upgrading your locks to BS3621. This is the standard most insurance companies require anyway. BS3621 is a British Standard for locks tested against burglary techniques like drilling and picking.

And make sure you use them. If your deadlock is open and covered in cobwebs it is clearly not in use.

Get locks for your windows too. Many burglars gain entry through your windows.

4 – Light timers

Install a few of these around the house. They give the impression that someone is home. Opportunist burglars often creep up on a house that looks like it is empty. This is when these lights come into their own. A great deterrent.

5 – Enlist the help of friendly neighbours

Get your neighbour or a family member to pop round to open the curtains and pick up the post. Again this gives the impression that someone is home and helps to trick prying eyes.

Better still ask someone to house sit. If burglars think someone is in, they will move onto an easier target!

Boosting your Home Security

Of course, great home security prevents burglary all year round. A smart Intruder Alarm and CCTV system can be accessed from anywhere in the world. As long as you have an internet connection and your smart phone you can drop in and make sure everything is in order.

Eastern Security will be happy provide a free, no obligation site survey to work out the best options for your Home Security. This will be arranged at your convenience with one of our friendly security experts. He’ll walk you through the options and advise on what works best for your budget and family requirements.

You’ll be sure that even if someone in your group ignores these Holiday Burglary Prevention Tips your home will still be protected!