Christmas is now fast approaching and as many of us begin gathering gifts, decorating trees and revelling in our long awaited (and overdue!) opportunity to travel and see loved ones for the special days to come.
In the midst of all the excitement and preparation for the festive season, home burglaries are set to surge, increasing by around 25 per cent in London alone, with rates often peaking in the two weeks either side of Christmas Day.
To make sure Santa is the only person sneaking into your home over Christmas, Amthal has laid out some top tips to keep your home secure this Christmas.
Treasure Tree
Your Christmas tree is seen as a statement and the ultimate way to bring Christmas spirit into your home, so it’s inevitable you’ll want it to take pride of place, but it’s important that you keep the tree out of direct view from passers-by.
A tree decked with extravagant lights and delicate decorations, alongside clearly visible presents, will undoubtedly attract the attention of mindless thieves, so keep it all away from the window and out of sight.
And whilst we’re discussing Christmas Trees, make sure if you have a real Christmas Tree, you keep it watered to avoid the fire safety risks, so that this year is remembered for all the right reasons!
Deck your home with security
Home security doesn’t have to involve high tech apps and multiple cameras, but adding intruder alarms and CCTV at main entrances will make a world of difference to the security of your home.
Make sure bell boxes are branded with a well-known security company such as Amthal, as savvy burglars can easily spot the difference between a fake installation and real monitored alarm, that is most likely to trigger an instant police response.
The weather outside is frightful…
The winter weather can leave many of us favouring the warmth of our homes over the cold chill of our gardens.
With back gardens and side gates largely out of use over the festive period, many of us can forget to secure loose gates, fences and garage doors. With storms such as Arwen and Barra, and sadly more to follow, loosening ‘secure’ side entrances, it’s worth checking on your outdoor entryways.
It’s important to invest in some high-quality locks and visual verification, which will prevent people from being able to easily access your property via a gate.
Don’t Leave Your Home Alone
If you’re leaving home for this holiday season or have a particularly busy schedule in the run-up to Christmas, always make sure your home looks lively even if you’re elsewhere.
The best deterrent for thieves is your own presence, but if you’re not there, recreate your daily movements. There are many other ways to keep your home looking busy:
- Timed lamps – they will switch on and off during set periods
- Leaving hallway lights on
- Ask neighbours to move bins on the driveway to mimic daily activity
- Leave your car on the driveway – use public transport to travel this Christmas
- Ask a friend or neighbour to move any built-up post out of sight.
Says Jamie Allam, CEO Amthal Fire & Security: “This year many families will be looking forward to the opportunity to make up for last Christmas, when we were in lockdown. But in doing so, it’s crucial we keep our homes secure so that our festivities are not ruined by opportunist criminals looking to take advantage of the festive season of goodwill. It’s only small details that can make a difference to ‘protect what’s precious.”
Wishing you a safe and secure Christmas.