Summer home safety
Posted Jul 5, 2012 09:55:42 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Waterloo Regional Police are reminding those who may be heading out of town for summer vacation to make sure their home is safe.
Public affairs coordinator for regional police, Olaf Heinzel tells 570 news, they see a substantial increase in the number of break-ins this time of year.
Heinzel says now’s a good time to get to know your neighbour, “And to make the announcement that you’re going to be away to people who you know you can trust. If you speak to your neighbours or someone who you trust who can check on your home, that would be the ideal situation.” “Checking on your home could mean checking on your doors and windows making sure there’s no damage. And also potentially if they could mow your lawn and do some of the basic maintenance around your property to make it look like you’re home.”
He says you should make your home look lived in, “That discourages people from trying to break into your house. Lights are always a good idea because the potential thieves will be working under the cover of darkness or behind bushes. That’s another reason why we ask people to maintain bushes and trees.”
It’s also a good idea to not announce on social media that you’re heading out of town.
Waterloo Regional Police have a check list you can use to make sure your home is safe. It’s called the Home Security Self Audit. Here’s the link.
