Break-ins to private premises are one of the main concerns to both residential and commercial properties owners in the UK. In fact, many business and homeowners are so concerned about the safety of their properties, they regularly attend neighbourhood watch meetings to discuss ways to reduce burglaries and general theft related crime in their areas.
To protect your home or business premises from theft or intruders, you do not necessarily have to spend a small fortune on the latest high-tech gadgets or private security firms. If anything, just a good measure of common sense, simple security procedures and a basic understanding of crime and how burglars think can be enough to discourage even the most determined of criminals.
To help make your home or business premises a more secure and safer place, there are a number of simple security measures that you can take.
1. Secure Your Premises
The first step in making your home or business premises more secure is to install good door and window locks. The doors and widows are, of course, the main point of entry in almost all burglaries in the UK. To make your doors more secure, you can install additional deadlocks and for widows you can easily fix simple internal opening locks. For a few hundred pound’s and a day’s work, you can significantly boost the overall security level of your property.
2. Visibility
High fences or hedges do offer a certain level of privacy from the outside world, which many business and homeowners enjoy. However, high hedges, trees or fences also make the ideal cover for a burglar that is working on your window or door locks. If your entranceways are exposed to the public, the chances of a burglar attempting entry at these points are greatly reduced. Good net curtains or blinds can easily restore your sense of privacy without compromising your home’s security.
3. Security Installations
There are lots of easy to install security devices readily available on the markets. Most basic devices can be successfully installed by even the most inexperienced of DIY minded people. A lot of motion sensors, triggered window/door alarms and security locking devices can all be set up, in most cases, by merely following the instructions on the back of the box. These types of devices may not turn your home into an impregnable fortress, but they can certainly put off opportunist burglars.
4. Landscaping
You can make your home more secure by adopting some burglar unfriendly landscaping ideas. You can place loose gravel around your doors and windows that is very noisy when walked on or even position rose bushes or other prickly plants directly under them. These types of simple ideas can make quiet, unhindered break-ins that much more difficult for would be thieves.
5. Visible Valuables
It’s a good idea not to leave valuable items in plain view. If you have just bought a new state-of-the-art computer or sound system, which is located in a ground floor room, privacy curtains or blinds can reduce the temptation factor from unwanted peering eyes. If something valuable is clearly on display, a thief maybe more willing to take a risk on a quick smash and grab.
6. Product Boxes
Don’t leave your new electrical product boxes on display outside of your home, whilst waiting for the bin men to collect them. If you have just invested a few thousand pounds on the very latest flat screen TV, there really is no need to broadcast this to every passing potential thief. Be smart and don’t give away any clues to what valuables you may have in your home. Remember, most burglaries are premeditated with thieves knowing beforehand exactly what they are after.
7. Lights
If you are planning on going out for the evening or even for the weekend, leaving some lights on will make your home look occupied. You can also leave the radio or music on to add to the effect that someone is actually at home. Most would be thieves definitely think twice about entering a home, which they believe to be occupied.
At the end of the day, deterring thieves comprises of a balance between good security devices, lack of breaking-in cover and removing visible temptations.
Author bio
Mildred Stilson is writing on a freelance basis for GT Stewart, a firm that has established itself as one of the leading providers of legal assistance for actions against the police and other areas.
