House Checklist before vacation
How does it feel to come home after a pleasant vacation to see your lovely home has been raided and your valuables are all gone? This thought has hindered many from enjoying their vacation: they are always thinking of their homes, with their valuables they left behind without fully enjoying the purpose of the holiday. The Greg Ganyo Insurance Agency will show you practical steps to prevent break-ins for a great homecoming from vacation. Here is your Checklist – “preparing a house for extended vacation”!
Make your home lively while you are away
Thieves look for the quiet houses with no activities; pay someone to mow the lawn, have someone to switch on and off your house lights, stop the mail deliveries or newspaper or have friends to pick them up daily. These activities will give the impression that people are living in the house.
Blow the whistle after the vacation and not during the vacation
We get tempted of wanting to update our social media with the fun we are having, the exotic places we are, and the different cuisine we are having. This is a bad idea; many thieves get their information via social media; posting pictures, videos or updating your availability can lead to your lovely home being burgled. You can, however, blow the whistle after the vacation, when you are at home.
Renter’s/Homeowner’s insurance
Get a good renter’s or homeowner’s insurance policy, this helps to protect your legal or liability responsibility for any property damage you and your family cause to other people and it also covers damage to your property.
Keep an up-to-date inventory
Always update your inventory such as serial numbers, receipts, photos or appraisals of your valuables (tools, electronics, and jewelry). Video each room closet and drawer and get it on a drive away from the house. Insurers want to pay you for your loss but they can’t pay you for what you don’t remember.
Let your windows and doors be visible
Keep your trees and shrubs close to the windows and doors trimmed, the majority of break-ins happen when everyone is away to work or schools, do not give them the chance to sneak into your house with the help of greenery.
Secure your homes
With the aid of surveillance cameras, motion activated lights, monitored home security system, and high-quality solid wood or metal doors will make your home a hard target to burgle. A neighborhood watch group is also a great place to start. If you are not a fan of the high-tech security you can spend your money on strong bolts for doors and windows, these may not stop them from entry but will create a lot of noise which will attract neighbors.
Be unpredictable
Give your spare house key to a trusted friend or neighbor rather than hiding your house key under the doormat or in a vase beside your door.
Secondly, when going on a vacation keep your valuables somewhere different apart from the master bedroom. You can keep them in a safe, in a case where you do not have a safe, you can keep your valuables in the children’s room burglars don’t usually check the kids’ room for valuables they go for the master bedroom.
Reading these steps will not guarantee your home from break-ins but applying them will prevent break-ins for a great homecoming from vacation. Save this “Preparing house for extended vacation” Checklist!
