Peace of mind while you’re away - Advice on keeping your
home secure
Everyone needs a holiday some time. And however much you
like your home, there’s nothing like a change of surroundings.
But you want to come home and find everything as you left
it. Four out of five burglaries occur when a house or flat is
empty, so don’t advertise that you’re away on holiday.
Plan ahead
The checklist below will help you to keep your home secure.
Read it now so that you can plan ahead. Then tick off the
items just before you go.
Help from your neighbours
It’s also a good idea to get help from your neighbours. All
you have to do is fill in the card below and give it to a
friend or neighbour. It asks them to keep an eye on your home
while you’re away.
You could also ask them to collect post left in the
letter-box, sweep up leaves, even mow the lawn and generally
make the place look lived in.
You can repay the favour by doing the same for them. Warn
your key-holding neighbour not to put your surname,
address or even your house number on your keys in case they
fall into the wrong hands.
Is there a Neighbourhood Watch scheme where you live? It
could help you keep your home secure while you’re away, and
has many other crime prevention and community benefits.
Checklist
 | Help reduce the risk of your home being broken into by
taking some simple home security measures. The free booklet
‘Your Practical Guide to Crime Prevention’ has over a
hundred tips on preventing crime, available from your local
police station or write to Home Office, PO Box 999, Sudbury,
Suffolk CO10 6FS. |
| Leave small valuable items, like jewellery, on deposit
at the bank, or consider installing a small floor safe.
Don’t lock internal doors or desks – they may be forced if
someone does break in. |
| Mark any other valuable items with your postcode
followed by the house number or the first two letters of the
house name. Then if they are stolen and later found,
the police can identify and return them to you. Use the
right security marker – DIY shops sell property-marking
kits. Ask your local crime prevention officer for ‘postcoded
property’ warning stickers to display in the front and back
windows of your house. Also take photos of all valuable
items. This is particularly important for those which may be
unsuitable for marking. |
| Arrange for pets to be properly looked after. |
| Cut the lawn before you go. |
| Cancel deliveries of milk, newspapers, etc., discreetly
– don’t announce your departure to a shop full of people.
Only tell people who need to know you’re going away. |
| Make sure your house looks occupied. Closed curtains in
the daytime make it look as if no one is home. It is
worthwhile to get automatic time-switches to switch lights –
and a radio – on and off in downstairs rooms. |
| Don’t leave valuable items like TVs, videos or hi-fi
visible through windows. |
| Lock the garage and shed with proper security locks,
after putting all your tools safely away so they cannot be
used to break into your house. If you have to leave a
ladder out, put it on its side and lock it to a secure
fixture with a ‘close-shackle’ padlock and a heavy-duty
chain. |
| Don’t have your home address showing on your luggage for
the outward journey. Put this only on the inside of your
cases. |
| Finally, lock all outside doors and windows. If you have
a burglar alarm, make sure it is set – and that you have
told the police who the key-holder is. |
And just before you actually set off, it’s worth allowing a
quiet couple of minutes on the doorstep to check you’ve done
all you had to do and taken everything you need with you.
Dear neighbour
Please be a good neighbour and look after my house while
I’m away. Check doors and windows (every day, if possible).
Push newspapers and letters right through the letter-box. Make
sure no milk or other deliveries are left on the step. And if
you see or hear anything suspicious, please don’t hesitate to
dial 999 and ask for the police.
Good Neighbour Card
Signed
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Home
address-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you for your help – I’ll look after your home while
you are away.
I will be away from
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Returning on
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Holiday address(es), dates and telephone
numbers-------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Holiday company telephone
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Car make, colour and registration
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Other information
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please keep this card in a safe place – thank you. (If
you have my spare key, please don’t mark it with my
surname, address, house number or anything similar.)
