Keeping your home safe this Autumn and Winter

As National Home Security Month draws to an end, we thought it’d be useful to gather some top tips and advice on how to keep your home safe this Autumn and Winter.

Whether you live alone or with others, we want to make sure you feel as comfortable and safe as possible so that you can enjoy being at home.

Doors and Windows
It’s always a good idea to lock your doors and windows when you leave home to make sure nobody can get in without a key. When you’re asleep, even though you’re at home, it’s best to keep doors and windows locked to keep your home safe and secure.

Halloween and Bonfire Night
This is the time of year when most burglaries happen, so it’s important to take extra steps to be careful. But don’t worry – we’ve got some tips on how to stay security-savvy during this period.

If you don’t want to be disturbed by Trick-or-Treaters on Halloween, you can put up a sign with the words ‘No Trick-or-

Treaters’ on your front door
If you go out trick-or-treating, make sure that your doors and windows are locked when you leave home. That’ll prevent any nasty surprises while you’re out!

If you’ve got festive plans for Halloween and will be out for the evening, don’t share what you’ll be doing on social media until after you’ve already been out. This way, you won't be letting potential burglars know that your home will be empty for the evening!

Darker evenings
If you’re going out and don’t plan on coming back for a while, you might like to leave a light on, such as a lamp, to make it look like there’s someone home (even though there isn’t). This can put off burglars, who often plan to break into homes in the evening and overnight.

Candles
Sometimes we like to light a candle when we’re at home to make us feel cosy and relaxed. If you start to feel sleepy or are going to nip out for a bit, be sure to blow out any candles. If they’re left unattended they can sometimes cause a lot of damage.

Belongings
Electrical devices, cash and jewellery are the most frequently stolen belongings in home burglaries. So try to keep these out of sight from the windows, ideally by putting them in a safe place like a cupboard or drawer that can be locked.
If your belongings were stolen, it would make it easier for the police to return the stolen items to you if they were registered with Immobilise, which is the UK’s National Property Register. You can write your postcode and your flat or house number on your belongings and register them online here https://www.immobilise.com/.

Keys
Inside your home, it’s best to leave keys far away from the front door and windows, because burglars can reach through the letter box or an open window to get hold of the keys if they’re left in grabbing distance. Hiding a spare set of keys outside your front door - or nearby - is really risky and burglars may expect people to do this.

Visit the Home Security Month website www.homesecuritymonth.com/ or follow their Facebook @NHSM13 pages for more information about keeping your home safe.