It’s the most wonderful time of the year — for most.
Unfortunately for some, Christmas time attracts many opportunistic criminals, taking advantage of the many inviting features that the holiday season brings.
Luckily, by following our top five tips, you can have yourself a very merry Christmas:
- Make sure neither your presents nor the Christmas tree is visible from outside your home. Criminals are opportunistic; they like to enter and exit the house as quickly as possible. Showing your tree from the outside may as well be a sign post to where a lot of your valuable items are situated. Potential criminals won’t need to go searching for valuables and therefore may be more inclined to try and steal from you.
- Dispose of present packaging carefully. Bins up and down the country will be strewn with packaging for all kinds of expensive and luxury items on December 25th. This gives criminals the opportunity to know exactly what sort of goods are available to steal from your home. One idea to combat this is to keep packaging in a separate bin inside your home for a couple of weeks. Alternatively, remove any brand labelling if possible before placing in bins outside.
- Be wary of what you post on social media. Similar to the previous tip, don’t give thieves the chance to know what expensive items you got for Christmas. Resist the urge to post on social media if you can. The same rule applies for if you are going away for Christmas. Don’t let the world know that you will be leaving your house empty over the Christmas period. If the temptation is too much then make sure your profiles are set to private at the very least.
- Use Christmas lights as a deterrent. Deterrents are the best way to keep thieves out of your home. Installing lots of Christmas lights on the outside of your home not only makes your house highly festive but will also detract from anyone breaking in. Thieves aren’t going to risk stealing from a home that is lit up and highly noticeable to passersby.
- Don’t let it seem like you aren’t home. Many people choose to go away for Christmas, either travelling to visit a family member or using the festive season as an excuse to take a holiday. Either way, homes that are clearly vacant are going to be glaring targets for potential thieves. A top tip for making it seem like you are home is to ask a neighbour for some extra help. They can leave footprints in the snow (if the conditions allow) and can collect any post or packages that build up by your front door. If you don’t have neighbours you can rely on, leave a radio on — perhaps even a Christmas jingle (which, really, may be the best deterrent of all).
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