| Are our homes safe enough ? |
| Ensuring that our sanctuaries, the place where our families feel secure and protected from criminal intrusion should be high on your list of priorities.
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The majority of home and flat burglaries occur during the daytime when most people are away at work or school. Burglaries are committed most often by young males under 25 years of age looking for items that are small, expensive, and can easily be converted to cash.
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Favorite items are cash, jewelry, guns, watches, laptop computers, VCRs, video players, CDs and other small electronic devices are high on the list. Quick cash is needed for living expenses and drugs.
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Burglars use some force to enter a dwelling, but their preference is to gain easy access through an open door or window. Ordinary household tools like screwdrivers, pliers, small crow bars, and hammers are most often used by burglars.
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Although home burglaries may seem random in occurrence, they actually involve a selection process. The burglar's selection process is simple. Choose an unoccupied home with the easiest access, the greatest amount of cover, and with the best escape routes.
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What do we do to minimize your risk by making your home unattractive to potential burglars.
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The first step is to "harden the target" or make your home more difficult to enter. Remember, the burglar will simply bypass your home if it requires too much effort or requires more skill and tools than they possess. Most burglars enter via the front, back, or garage doors. Experienced burglars know that the garage door is usually the weakest point of entry followed by the back door. The garage and back doors also provide the most cover. Burglars know to look inside your car for keys and other valuables so keep it locked, even when parked inside your garage.
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Lock all outside doors and windows before you leave the house or go to bed. Even if it is for a short time, lock your doors. Check your locks on doors and windows and replace them with secure devices as necessary. Sliding glass doors are vulnerable. Special locks are available for better security. Other windows may need better locks. Check with a locksmith or hardware store for alternatives.
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LIGHTING is one of the most INEXPENSIVE crime deterrents. Leave lights on when you go out. If you are going to be away for a length of time, connect some lamps to automatic timers to turn them on in the evening and off during the day. Keep your garage door closed and locked. Interior lighting is necessary to show signs of life and activity inside a residence at night. A darken home night-after-night sends the message to burglars that you are away on a trip.
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Indoor and outdoor lights should be on an automatic timer. The practice of leaving the garage or porch lights turned on all day is a dead giveaway that you are out of town. Light timers are inexpensive and can be found everywhere. They should be used on a daily basis, not just when you’re away. In this way you set up a routine that your neighbors can observe and will allow them to become suspicious when your normally lighted home becomes dark. The same light timers can be used to turn on radios or television sets to further enhance the illusion of occupancy.
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Exterior lighting along the perimeter and especially at the entryway is also very important. It becomes critical if you must park in a common area parking lot or underground garage and need to walk to your front door. Good lighting is to allow you to identify a threat is definitely a deterrent to criminals as they don't want to be seen or dentified. Security lights with infra-red motion sensors are relatively inexpensive and can easily replace an exterior lights.
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When leaving home for an extended time, have a neighbor or family member watch your house and pick up your newspapers and post. Don't allow daily deliveries of mail, newspapers or flyers build up while you are away. Arrange with the Post Office to hold your mail, or arrange for a friend or neighbor to take them regularly.
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Large displays of holiday gifts should not be visible through the windows and doors of your home.
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Never leave keys under doormats, flowerpots, mailboxes or other "secret" hiding places -- burglars know where to look for hidden keys.
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Keep a detailed inventory of your valuable possessions, including a description of the items, date of purchase and original value, and serial numbers, and keep a copy in a safe place away from home -- this is a good precaution in case of fires or other disasters. Make a photographic or video record of valuable objects, heirlooms and antiques. Your insurance company can provide assistance in making and keeping your inventory. Engrave your Vehicle Number Plate number onto your valuables as this can be traced to you. Photograph or videotape those items that cannot be engraved. You will be thankful that you took these steps in case your home is ever destroyed by fire or flood, is ransacked, or if your wallet is lost or stolen.
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Arrange for your lawn to be mowed if you are going away for an extended time. Trim your shrubbery around your home to reduce cover for burglars. Keep windows clear and free of shrubbery and debris. Overgrowth may provide hiding places for criminals. Privacy fences give you privacy, but they also give the criminal concealment from outside view. Secure your garage door, even when you are at home. Burglaries and thefts take minutes or even seconds to commit.
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Prior to installing home-security devices - think fire safety first. Would the device prevent you from getting out of your home? Do you have pet doors? They provide entry for pets, but they may also provide entry for criminals. Keep trees and shrubbery trimmed for better visibility.
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Secure your keys and keep them out of view. NEVER place identification tags on your key rings. Treat your garage door remote like your keys. NEVER leave your garage door remote inside a vehicle which is parked outside.
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DON'T open your door until you know who is there. Know who is at your door before opening it. Screen doors and chain locks provide false security. Obtain identification. If they show you an ID for a service company (i.e. Cable, phone, etc.) call their employer and verify who they are and why they are at your door. Consider installing peepholes in all entryway doors. Be aware that criminals sometimes pose as couriers delivering gifts. It is not uncommon for criminals to take advantage of the generosity of people during the holiday season by soliciting donations door-to-door for charitable causes although no charity is involved. Ask for their identification, and find out how the donated funds will be used. If you are not satisfied, do not donate. Donate to a recognized charitable organization.
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When hosting a party, have non-alcoholic beverages available for party guests. Find alternative transportation for intoxicated guests. Arrange for an official designated driver for your party who will not drink at all.
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When attending a party have something to eat before consuming alcoholic beverages. Eat high protein foods that will stay in your stomach longer and slow the absorption of alcohol into your system. Remember only time will eliminate the alcohol from your body. Know your safe limit. Never drink and drive.
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sliding glass doors can be lifted up and off their track and thereby defeat the latch mechanism. To prevent lifting, you need to keep the door rollers in good condition and properly adjusted. You can also install anti-lift devices such as a pin that extends through both the sliding and fixed portion of the door. There are also numerous locking and blocking devices available in any good quality hardware store that will prevent a sliding door from being lifted or forced horizontally. Place highly visible sticker on the glass door near the latch mechanism that indicates that an alarm system, a dog, or block watch/operation identification is in place. Burglars dislike alarm systems and definitely big barking dogs.
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Windows are left unlocked and open at a much higher rate than doors. An open window, visible from the street or alley, may be the sole reason for your home to be selected by a burglar. Ground floor windows are more susceptible to break-ins for obvious reasons. Upper floor windows become attractive if they can be accessed from a stairway, tree, fence, or by climbing on balconies.
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Good neighbors should look out for each other. Get to know your neighbors on each side of your home and the three directly across the street. Invite them into your home, communicate often, and establish trust. Good neighbors will watch out for your home or apartment when you are away, if you ask them. They can report suspicious activity to the police or to you while you are away. Between them, good neighbors can see to it that normal services continue in your absence by allowing vendors to mow your lawn or remove snow. Good neighbors can pick up your mail, newspapers, handbills, and can inspect the outside or inside of your home periodically to see that all is well. Good neighbors will occasionally park in your driveway to give the appearance of occupancy while you are on vacation.
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Allowing a neighbor to have a key solves the problem of hiding a key outside the door. Experienced burglars know to look for hidden keys in planter boxes, under doormats, and above the ledge. Requiring a service vendor to see your neighbor to retrieve and return your house key will send the message that someone is watching. This neighborhood watch technique sets up what is called 'territoriality' which means that your neighbors will take ownership and responsibility for what occurs in your mini-neighborhood. This concept works in both single family homes communities and on apartment properties. This practice helps deter burglaries and other crimes in a big way. Of course for this to work, you must reciprocate and offer the same services.
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Alarm systems definitely have a place in a home security plan and are effective, if used properly. The reason why alarms systems deter burglaries is because they increase the potential and fear of being caught and arrested by the police. The deterrent value comes from the alarm company lawn sign and from the alarm signs on the windows. Home and apartment burglars will usually bypass a property with visible alarm signs and will go to another property without such a sign. Some people, with alarm systems, feel that these signs are unsightly and will not display them. The risk here is that an uninformed burglar might break a window or door and grab a few quick items before the police can respond. Also, don't write your alarm passcode on or near the alarm keypad.
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Having a safe in your home is a wise investment. Home safes are designed to keep the smash and grab burglar, nosey kids, dishonest babysitter or housekeeper from gaining access to important documents and personal property. Home safes need to be anchored into the floor or permanent shelving.
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Use the safe everyday so it becomes routine. Protect the safe code and change it occasionally. Install it away from the master bedroom or closet
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