Safety Tips: Burglary

An average family has a one-in-four chance of being the victim of a serious crime each year according to Justice Department statistics. Even worse, burglary and violence often go hand in hand. To help protect your home and family from a violent burglary, we have put together the following safety tips:

Install A Security System

• Alarm systems are an effective deterrent--9 out 10 convicted burglars agree they'd avoid a house protected by an alarm system.
• Make sure your security system includes a loud inside alarm, detectors at all exterior doors, and motion sensors in the main living areas.
• Security system decals and signs are also an effective deterrent.

Be Careful While you're Away

• According to the FBI, more burglaries occur in July and August than in any other months. So, before you take your family on that long awaited family vacation, make sure your home is secured by a home security system. The last thing you want to deal with when you come home is replacing valuable possessions and filing paperwork with the police department. Protect your home now.
• Never leave an answering machine message indicating you're not at home. Instead, just say you "can't come to the phone."
• Don't let mail, newspapers or flyers accumulate while you're away, tipping off criminals. Have the post office hold mail, have newspapers suspended, and have a neighbor or friend clear away flyers.
• When vacationing, leave a car in your driveway or arrange for a neighbor to keep a car there and move it around from time to time.

Secure Main Entry Points

• To secure sliding glass doors, add a bolt lock or use a "charley bar" to block the door closed.
• Most home burglaries occur between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., so get in the habit of locking all doors and windows whenever you go out.
• Make sure exterior door hinges are on the inside rather than the outside - where an intruder can remove the pins and pull the door out of the frame.
• Prune overgrown trees and shrubs to eliminate hiding places for intruders.
• Thieves always look in mailboxes, under doormats and above doorways for keys. Don't make it easy for them to get into your home.

Protect Yourself and your Valuables

• Make an inventory of valuables in your household and store it somewhere other than your home, such as in a safe deposit box.
• Ask for I.D. from service representatives who come to your home, and if they don't have it, check with their company to verify identity before letting them in.