It is nice having a holiday home to get away to, especially if its along the coast when the Australian summer rolls in. But since you probably spend more time at your home, keeping intruders away from your beachfront holiday house can be sometimes tricky. Have a read on to learn more about steps you can take to protect your holiday home.
1. GET TO KNOW YOUR NEIGHBOURS!
Whilst it sounds pretty obvious, how many of us actually know our neighbour’s? Back in the good old days when your neighbour’s alarm went off, you would go out and check what was happening? Now we don’t even know, or care, who are neighbour’s are! We’re more likely to close the window or door if we hear an alarm.
Get to know your neighbour’s, introduce yourself and be friendly; take over a bottle of wine and reintroduce the ‘neighbourhood watch’ program. It doesn’t cost much as the return on investment is so much more than a high tech security system!
An observant neighbor may know a lot about what happens when you’re not around. Let them know when you’ll be around and more importantly, when you’ll be away. They can keep an eye out for strange activity. Give them your phone number and a spare set of keys so they can act quickly if something goes wrong.
2. DON’T LET IT SHOW THAT NO ONE IS THERE!
The smartest thing you can do to keep your holiday home safe is to make it look like there are people living in the house.
You can try these things:
- Arrange for a gardener to regularly mow the lawns and weed.
- Put a ‘No Junk Mail’ Sign on the letterbox.
- Arrange a re-direction of mail.
- Use timers for LED lights to have lights and music playing at random times.
- Allow a neighbour to park their car in the driveway occasionally.
3. CHECK YOUR ALARM SYSTEM
If you have an alarm system, check that it is working… and use it! Make sure it is on when you leave and most importantly it reports to a control room! There is no point having the alarm activate – and no one knows it has alarmed!
Nearly all alarm systems can be configured to report to a control room monitoring centre and the cost of monitoring is minimal – but it does give you the peace of mind that the system is being protected.
We can help you with all your alarm needs, whether it be a new installation, getting your old Bosch, DSC or DAS alarm system up and running again – or even just connecting it up to our control room for alarm monitoring – we have the solution and time to help you!
4. DON’T LEAVE SPARE KEYS OUTSIDE
Fake rock key holders and secret hiding places under the mat or above the door are common knowledge to experienced intruders and burglars. Don’t give them an ‘in’ – leave keys with someone you trust. If you are going to use a key safe, make sure its a quality unit – don’t skimp!
5. INSTALL LED FLOOD LIGHTING
Outdoor lights with motion sensors are useful even while you’re home. So why not install a floodlight that automatically turns on when it detects motion while you’re not there? The light alone may be enough to deter an intruder. If you need some advice we can help you with LED lighting.
6. SECURE THE OUTSIDE OF YOUR HOME
Secure the outside of your property! If you a shed or garage, make sure you have quality locks on them to protect their contents. Whatever you do, don’t leave any tools lying around, such as garden forks or spades, and put away any ladders, as these can all be used to gain access to your property.
7. CCTV SECURITY CAMERAS
An intruder will be less likely to break into your home if there is a CCTV system visible. If you are considering a system, make sure it has the capability to be accessible on your phone remotely as well as send you push notifications if it detects a human. Remember there is no point just having a system that records – you want it to tell you if there is a problem!
We can help you with your CCTV IP cameras needs – whether it be a Hikvision or Dahua NVR or an Umbo camera with artificial intelligence to notify you when it detects a human on your property – we have the solution right for you!