The winter holidays and shortly afterward are prime times for crime. Communities often see a spike in crime around this time. Thieves know that many home will be vacant while families are out visiting, and they also know that there will be expensive gifts under the tree, just waiting to be snatched quicker than a wink.
Two of the biggest post holiday community-based crimes are vandalism to personal property, such as holiday decorations, and thefts of property from vehicles. Juvenile vandals get a thrill from stealing or ruining your decorations. And thieves will cruise a neighborhood looking for unlocked cars.
Here are some post holiday crime prevention tips that you can use to keep everything safe.
Decorating the outside of your home draws attention it it. Be wary of displaying large or expensive decorations, because they are an easy target for criminals. Don’t place them close to the road where a vandal can just drive buy with a bat or other weapon. Place your name or a number somewhere on the decoration to aid in recovery if it is stolen.
Turn your Christmas lights off before you go to bed, so your home won’t stand out from the road.
Install a flood light that lights up the dark areas on the outside of your home, so thieves can’t easily sneak around.
Install a motion detector (motion sensitive lighting) to deter criminals. If a thief walks on to your property at night, the lights will turn on.
Thieves will travel into quiet neighborhoods because they are away from high-traffic roads where police or other community members are out. Even if you are in the nicest neighborhood, it makes sense not to leave valuables in plain view.
Look your car doors. Most thefts from cars that police investigate involve unlocked cars. Thieves will stroll a neighborhood just looking for a car that is unlocked. Just opening the door and grabbing a purse, an iPod, a GPS system, cash, or a portable DVD player doesn’t attract much attention. Hide valuable items in your car, even if the doors are locked, and keep track of serial numbers to aid police in recovery, should anything be stolen.
Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.
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