How To Keep Your Home Safe When On Holiday

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Home Security
How To Keep Your Home Safe When You Are On Holiday
home security
How To Keep Your Home 
Safe and Secure When 
You are on Holiday 
 
 
 
When you are about to go on holiday your mind is probably 
thinking about packing, buying currency, getting travel 
insurance, booking an airport car park space and making sure 
you have packed your passport. 
 
 
Do you think about the security of 
the home you are leaving behind? 
 
Here are our top 10 tips for keeping your home safe while on 
holiday: 
1. Leave your curtains open or closed? 
Many people have the strong belief that you should close 
your curtains when you are away so that a burglar cannot 
see in.  However, this is a key sign for burglars that you 
are out especially when they can see the curtains closed 
during the day. Once they break into your home, they can 
take their time moving around looking for your valuables 
as no-one can see them. 
 
2. Be careful about who you tell about your upcoming 
exciting holiday! 
It is exciting going on holiday and you probably want to 
tell everyone but be careful who is listening.  You can 
trust your close friends and family and it is wise to tell 
your neighbours, however, if you tell everyone in your 
local shop you don’t know who may be listening. Ensure 
that if you mention your holiday on social media you 
either wait until you get back or only post on private 
groups.  Some people are also tempted to update their 
answerphone message to say that they are on holiday and 
when they will return but remember it is not just your 
friends that may phone your number. 
 
 
 
 
3. Hide your valuables 
We advised you to keep your curtains open so don’t leave 
any valuables such as expensive jewellery near a 
window.  This is good advice even when you are not away 
but especially important if you are on holiday. Distribute 
your valuables around your house and don’t just hide all 
your best jewellery in your sock drawer as this is an 
obvious hiding place for burglars.  Leave some cheap 
jewellery or some money in an obvious place so that if the 
worst does happen, hopefully, the burglars will grab that 
and run. Breaking into houses to get car keys for valuable 
cars is very common nowadays.  If your car will be left 
sitting in the drive the whole time you are away it may be 
worthwhile leaving the keys with a friend or neighbour. 
 
 
4. Insurance 
By now you will have your travel insurance sorted but 
have you checked your house insurance?  Are you covered 
if you are away for more than 14 days? Are there any 
exclusions eg are you insured if someone else stays in 
your home whilst you are away? 
 
 
5. Tidy your garden 
If you are going away during the summer months when 
grass and weeds grow quickly, it won’t take long for your 
home to look like the house may be vacant.  Before you 
go cut the grass, tidy the borders and ensure any tools 
are locked safely in a shed or garage. 
 
 
 
6. Cancel deliveries 
Cancel any regular deliveries such as milk or newspapers. 
Don’t be tempted by online shopping the week before you 
go on holiday unless you are certain your goods will be 
delivered on time.  The last thing you want is your goods 
being left in normally safe places around your house like 
your back door, greenhouse or bin. 
 
7. Security 
To make your home look occupied, invest in a light on a 
timer switch that will come on for a few hours in the 
evening. Light up a room that you normally use in the 
evening.  Some people are inclined to set the hall light to 
come on or a table lamp near a window.  These are both 
quite obvious to a burglar. If you have an alarm ensure it 
is in good working order.  If you don’t, we recommend 
installing a wireless burglar alarm system as this is a 
great deterrent.  We can visit your home and provide a 
free quote for a new alarm system and/or home 
CCTV.  We will also point out any other home security 
risks that we can see. 
 
8. Kind neighbours 
If you are going to be away for more than a week, it is a 
good idea to ask a trusted neighbour to pop into your 
home a few times to remove mail from the front door and 
to water your plants.  Wilting flowers and piles of post are 
other giveaways to burglars that you are not at home. If 
your neighbour has a couple of cars and you are taking 
yours away, you could ask them to park in your drive 
sometimes. 
 
 
 
 
9. Early morning start 
If you are leaving early in the morning to catch a flight or 
ferry, please don’t be tempted to pack your car with your 
luggage the night before.  It may make it easier and 
quicker in the morning but it is a clear sign to anybody 
walking by that you are going away. 
 
10. Final checks 
The last checks you need to do before you head off for a 
great holiday are: 
o Are all windows locked? 
o Are all devices switched off? 
o Keep your router switched on if your alarm or 
camera are using an app. 
o Close internal doors so that an intruder can’t see 
right through your house from one window. 
o Empty your bins (you don’t want to come back to a 
smelly house)! 
o Switch on your alarm and lock all doors. 
 
Have a fantastic, relaxing holiday! 
If you would like any further help and advice on home security, 
please get in touch with one of our security experts at Safe 
Simple Secure in Edinburgh. 
 
First published at https://www.safesimplesecure.com/how-to-
keep-your-home-safe-while-on-holiday/