Home Security Precautions You Haven’t Considered

So, you’ve installed a do-it-yourself home security system. You’re one step closer to being fully protected. A home security system by itself, however, doesn’t guarantee your safety, and it doesn’t help you recover if your home is broken into. There are other important precautions you need to take.

Some of them – like locking your doors and windows, installing deadbolts, or putting lights on a timer when you’re not at home – are fairly intuitive. Other steps you can take might not be as obvious.

Here are some home security precautions you can take that you may not have considered:

• Don’t leave a key out for burglars. Burglars know where to look for keys. Doormats mailboxes, and even flower pots or beds. They also know to recognize those fake pebbles in your garden.
• Make a valuables inventory. If your home security system fails to prevent a burglary, you need to know what was there that may not be. Keep a detailed list of valued possessions, and include date of purchase, any serial numbers, and their value. Chances are your homeowner’s insurance company can help you put together a list.
• Trim your shrubs. Don’t give burglars a place to hide.
• Engrave your valuables. Consider engraving your driver’s license number onto your valuables. This will make it harder for criminals to sell them off, and make it easier for police to recover them.
• Be a really good neighbor. Get to know your neighbors, and learn to watch out for each others’ homes. Consider Neighborhood Watch. These groups have been proven to significantly reduce break-ins.
• Regularly test your home security system. That high-tech home security system can fail. Make sure you regularly test it to make sure that it’s functioning. Do all of the necessary system maintenance, and replace batteries when it’s time, too.

Do what you can to prevent burglaries. It’s the little things – like leaving a radio on during the day when you’re not at home or installing a motion-sensitive yard light – that will deter most criminals. Don’t be a victim; be diligent, and take these steps in order to secure your home.

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