Securing your home

For professional advice on how to improve your home security, read our advice guides.

Top tips

Remember to read our Home Security Guide above for more info! 

Tenants: your landlord may be willing to help you secure your property, but they are not obliged to add extra security. You will need the landlord’s permission to make alterations.

1. Keep your doors and windows locked - as many as half of all burglars use no force to enter a home, consider fitting extra door and window locks. If you are fitting new door locks it is a good idea to have them fitted by a professional.
2. Use a burglar alarm - alarms are a great psychological deterrent to burglars.
3. Look after the outside of your home - keep your garden clean and tidy. If you show you care about the appearance, it shows you care about security too.
4. Keep your house well lit - timer switches make it look like someone is home, while outdoor dusk till dawn lighting puts burglars off coming onto your property in the first place. Low energy, high efficiency lights should cost less than £10 a year to run!
5. Do not leave valuables on display - use blinds or net curtains to stop burglars from spotting tempting items through windows.
6. Do not trust ID badges - never let someone into your home without an appointment, use a number from the phone book to check their identity. You can also check the Worcestershire Trader Register https://www.traderregister.org.uk/worcestershire/index.php
7. Do not keep a key hidden outside - use a key safe or leave a spare with a trusted friend / neighbour.
8. Mark your valuables - use a product like Smart Water to mark your valuables, and register the serial numbers on Immobilise.
9. Clear your garden of tools and debris - a burglar will use these to help break into your home. Try storing any tools in the house, or if this is not possible chain them together and store them in a secure location.
10. Do not keep valuables in the shed - if you have no other option try covering up shed windows and chaining the valuables inside together, preferably to an anchor point.

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