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Are you going away to escape the UK winter weather?

Many people choose to go on holiday to warmer places during the winter months to avoid the cold UK weather.  Be it just for 2 weeks or an extended holiday, before you go it's really important to address your home security.  That way you can enjoy your holiday and not worry about your home being vacant. 

Winter is a great time for burglars to target your home, with the darker nights it's easier for them to identify if your home is occupied or vacant.  Over the last few months we have heard of a large spike in burglaries locally so be sure to implement the following security measures to ensure your home is not targeted, that way you can enjoy the pool or the slopes!

Keep the appearance that your home is occupied.

Tell-tale signs of an unoccupied home are:

• Post or newspapers piling up behind the door or sticking out of the letterbox.
• Curtains being left open at night or closed during the day.
• No lights being on during the evening while its dark.
• An overgrown garden.
• No vehicles being on the drive.
• An absence of activity at the premises.

Before you go away ensure you attend to these things.  Ask a neighbour to remove your post from behind the door, get them to open the curtains for you in the morning and close them at night and ask them to turn a light on in the evening.  If your vehicle is going to be parked away from your home ask a neighbour to park their vehicle on your drive.  Following these tips will make it look as though your home is occupied.

Deterring a potential burglar

• Invest in motion sensor lighting at the front and rear of your property.  A triggered light will illuminate anyone that enters your drive / garden and many times this is enough to scare them away if they do not have a legitimate reason to be there.
• Before you leave walk around your property to ensure that all doors, windows and points of access are secured and locked.  A proportion of burglaries occur without any forced entry.
• Install an alarm and ensure you use it.  The best kind of alarms are the monitored ones.  In the event of an activation the alarm will communicate with a key holder, after all you don't want to annoy your neighbours with your alarm going off and not having anyone to respond to it.

PHX Security have over 20 years of experience in providing Key Holding and Alarm Response Services to our clients.  This service is provided for as little as £1 a day and gives you peace of mind that your home is being looked after while you are away from it.  If you want any further information or advice please don't hesitate to contact our office on 01386 841982.