It’s Christmas time. But while you are enjoying a much-deserved break with a bit of mistletoe and wine, some other less desirable members of the community are getting prepared to ruin your holly-jolly spirit.
Crime is an unfortunate part of the festive season. During the holidays, rates of theft and robberies spike as Christmas-crimes become as prevalent as elves in the North Pole — just waiting for that special time of year. To make matters worse, crime resolution rates have plummeted with only 1 in 100 crimes being solved in the UK. So if your presents are stolen from beneath your tree, chances are you aren’t getting them back.
So what can you do to stop wannabe Grinches from ruining your festive cheer? We share a few steps you can take to protect your home and keep it as safe and secure as Santa’s naughty or nice list.
The Risks of Winter Sun and Social Media at Christmas
You and your potential burglar are probably dreaming of the same thing — a white Christmas. While you are avoiding cold temperatures basking somewhere abroad in the winter sun, thieves are hoping low temperatures will drive even more people overseas.
Why? Because an empty home is all they want for Christmas this year.
An uninhabited house is a very easy target for burglars. Especially one that has all of its most valuable possessions either packaged nicely under a tree or stored in boxes ready for wrapping. It makes it a lot easier for them to sweep in and grab a haul worthy of Santa’s sack.
It can be difficult for a burglar to know if a house is inhabited these days. With people wise to their old tricks, many leave lights on timers and have neighbours taking in the mail to make sure their home appears lived in.
However, one common mistake people make is advertising they are away on social media, by posting status updates and pictures — 78% of criminals scour social feeds in search of potential targets. By sharing the fact that you are away, you are letting criminals know your home is certifiably empty. It may be tempting to take part in some much-loved #holidaybragging, but it’s a safer bet to wait until you return home before you share your snaps.
Secure Your Most Valuable Festive Finds
It’s not the 90s anymore — some might say sadly — so the most expensive Christmas gifts are often tiny gadgets or pieces of tech. That, or classics like jewellery or watches. These presents are very easily snatched from under the tree by a burglar skulking in the dark, but thanks to their size, small gifts are easy to protect.
If a burglar makes it into your home, it can be tough to stop them from taking things — unless they are secured somewhere inaccessible like a safe. Modern safes are highly-effective methods of protecting valuables and small gifts. If secured behind thick metal and advanced deadbolt systems, there is no way a Christmas-crim is getting their hands on that new iPhone or gem-studded necklace locked inside.
It will give you peace of mind knowing you afforded your home the same level of security as Kevin McAllister gave his, but you’ll potentially save yourself some money at Christmas too, by not having to replace any stolen presents.
There are plenty of safes for sale that offer some much-needed protection to high-value gifts. Locking them away during the holiday season is what you need to prevent festive thieves from making away with your family’s cherished new toys. With around half-a-million burglaries taking place annually, a safe can be a valuable long-term investment that keeps everything from phones to car keys secure throughout the year.
Deterrence Is the Best Defence
What’s the best way to stop a Christmas-crime from entertaining the idea of reversing the role of Santa and taking the presents from beneath your tree? Make sure your home looks well protected, then they won’t risk spending the holiday season behind bars.
Setting your presents out nice and neatly, ripe for the taking by a burglar, and then enticing them in like putting out a mince pie for Father Christmas by not displaying your home’s security features is asking for trouble during the holidays.
But what can you do to deter those festive fiends?
CCTV is known to be the best active deterrent you can use for your home, along with visible burglar alarms boxes. If you don’t want your house monitored by CCTV or don’t fancy the investment in a full-scale alarm system, you can always buy fake units that look like the real deal — enough to scare away most would-be burglars.
Other things you can do include installing security lights, making sure you don’t have any easy access points (such as unlocked back gates) and even buying a dog — remember, a dog is for life, not just for Christmas.
Disclaimer: this is a collaborative post