We are now approaching the half term holidays and its not long now to the Christmas holidays either. I’m always very excited about this time of the year. I think it is mostly because my girls get so happy that it brings a smile to my face! During the Winter Holidays, a lot of people go away, perhaps within the country spending the holiday with family or maybe you are more adventurous and perhaps spend the holidays on a beach in a nice sunny spot or even at a ski resort. Whatever your plans you should always make sure you leave your home safe!
It is not nice to return home to find out that you have been burgaled. This could happen to anybody, even to people with all the money in the world who have a great security system can be the victim of a burglary. Look at what has happened with Kim Kardashian. I bet she is now in the search of even better security. This is just my worst nightmare. Isn’t it scary and awful when something like this happens to you?
I remember, many years ago, when I was living in Peru with my parents, we had a similar experience. We came back from being away at our beach house over the weekend and we arrived home to find it had been burgled. OMG, this was the scariest thing ever because first, you don’t know if they are still there and two because just the idea of thinking about a stranger touching your personal belongings is just distressful. I would never want this to happen to anybody.
We have a checklist at home that we always use and go through when we go away so we then know that we are not forgetting something. This is the best way to avoid those last minute rechecking.
I will share with you 5 things/ideas that we do that we found very important and essential to keep our home safe and away of burglaries when we are away traveling.
1. Turn Off All electrical Equipment, especially those in the kitchen
Make sure you have not left the oven or hob on, and maybe check that the fridge is closed properly. There can always be hazards that happen in the kitchen when leaving things on.
It happened to us once that we left the oven on and when we came back (Thankfully his was just a day out) the house was boiling but nothing burnt. We didn’t know what was going on, then we realised we had left the oven on. Nothing happened as we were lucky but imagine if you go away for a week you will definitely come back to a burnt house! Oops! SO we learnt our lesson.
Also, turn off your central heating if you happen to have one and turn off individual wall heaters too. You don’t want to have them on as nobody will be there, so there is no need to waste money on an empty house. As soon as you are back you can put it back on.
2. Lock All Doors & Windows
This is an obvious one. You can never leave your home without locking the door, especially the main door. But if you live in a bigger place with more doors you need to make sure all of them are properly locked.
The same with the windows as they can be an easy way to get into your house. Don’t leave keys where they are visible from a window or letterbox as that can be an easy way to invite unwanted strangers into your house.
3. Don’t advertise that you are going away
This is a difficult one, as being a blogger involves talking about where you are and what you are doing. However, you can be smart about this as you don’t need to give specifics about where you are or how long you’ll be there, basically not giving away more than necessary, and sometimes after the fact!
Another way, to avoid people knowing that you are away or out is to use automated lights so you can program them, and they will switch on and off at the times you set it up. This is super practical.
This way potential thieves will see lights on inside your house so then they will think someone is at home and be more likely to move on.
4. Get Home Security System
This is also a fantastic idea as you will get a security system that will do all the work for you while you are away so you don’t need to worry at all. There are some options out there such as Smart Home by Panasonic.
The Smart Home is a home monitoring and control system with simple installation and easy operation. Whether you use it to monitor your home while you are away or simply to switch your appliances on & off automatically, it gives you the ability to monitor and control your home from the convenience of your smartphone or tablet.
5. Leave Spare Keys
Another good idea is to perhaps give a spare key to family or a close friend – basically someone you trust, who can check the property for you while you’re away or to deal with any incident.
I really recommend doing this as it will give you a lot of peace of mind! You will be able to relax when you are away and stop worrying that you will need to come back if anything happens.
It is very important that you take a look at all of these essential tips as I’m sure they will help you to make your house safer and will also give you piece of mind. You want to enjoy your holidays and not be worried while you are away.
What do you think of these ideas/suggestions? Do you also do the same at home? Do you have any other ideas to perhaps add to this list? Do you have a home security system? Please leave a comment below as I would love to read what you think.
*Disclosure: collaborative post
Thanks for stopping by,
Love you all ❤️
Franca 💋
Linking up with:
Great tips Franca, thought I try to think less about home safety while on holidays, it is quite hard to completely ignore it. Halfway through, many times I started blabbering to hubby if I had locked the garden door, upstairs Windows etc, etc! Once I kept on pestering hubby about the lights at the under stairs storage and thigh he looked like he was ignoring me, upon reaching the airport, he handed over the keys to me and told me I am free to drive back home and check on the lights!!!!
There is so much to remember and to do when you go away. But for me these are essentials that you should always do. The leaving keys with someone is a good one, you never know what might happen while you away and being able to make a quick call back home can make all the difference. x #KCACOLS
Yes you are right. I like leaving my keys to someone we trust. It has always been super handy! Thanks so much for commenting Laura! 🙂 xx
This is some good advice. I’m lucky that I have neighbours who are very good about looking after my house when I’m away, plus because we have a cat there is always someone coming to look after her and so looking after the house. I should add that I wouldn’t turn off the heating entirely though in the winter – if it is freezing you need to have it on a little bit to stop your pipes freezing and exploding. #kcacols
Some great tips! I’ml definitely be writing these down when we manage to go away! X #KCACOLS
These are excellent tips. If you create a checklist of all of these items and check them off as you go it can help give you the piece of mind that you’ve taken care of everything before the trip #kcacols
Great suggestions Franca. I have never been burgled, but I can imagine how stressful it would be. Pen x #KCACOLS
We always check our doors are locked every night as part of our bedtime routine now – we kept finding we’d left the front door unlocked! Thankfully we live in a safe area but even still, you can’t be too careful! #KCACOLS
These are good tips! We go away to visit family quite often and this is my worry every time. Luckily we have lovely neighbours who watch out for our house etc! I always make sure someone can put out bins and bring them in to prevent people seeing you aren’t there, and we always leave a light on on a timer so it looks like we are in in the evenings! I know this works well as it has fooled our neighbours a few times! #KCACOLS
Great list, I never remember to unplug everything. #KCACOLS
Goodness this makes me feel quite slack, then we don’t go away very often as there is always someone in the house to manage Coombe Mill! #KCACOLS
We also always leave a spare key incase of an emergency, Great tips Franca especially with the holidays around the corner #KCACOLS
Such good tips to remember! Omg Iv also left the oven on while on a day out too! So scary! #KCACOLS
These are very important tips! I struggle with the advertising one, I really like to talk about going on holiday! I know I shouldn’t be too specific at least, I will have to work on this! x #kcacols
Great ideas I suppose their common sense but we sometimes forget. I read somewhere your house insurance is invalid if you have broadcasted being away on social media
#kcacols
Oh really? I didn’t know that! That is interesting to know! Thanks so much for commenting, 🙂 xx
I like the idea of a home security system but the reality is we just haven’t gotten round to it and I get scared by those horror stories of them being hacked etc! That said, we once had some stuff stolen by someone we’d allowed into the house and that was bad enough, the thought of being broken into and only finding out after a holiday makes me feel a bit sick!! So hard when everything is so public these days! #kcacols
There are some great tips here. I always leave a key with my neighbour an friend, she feeds my animals for me and keeps an eye on things. It defineitly gives us peace of mind knowing the place is being looked after.
great tips 🙂 we often have someone come in to feed the cats so they look out for the house too which is fab! #KCACOLS
Great Tips, I wish I was going on a holiday! I feel safer working at home and so does my son, there is always 1 of us at home, I have gravel and outside flood lights and loads of locks, I have thought about the smart cameras too just in case. #KCACOLS
Some very good tips that people just don’t think of like turning off the heating. As its on timer I never think of this!
My sister was burgled when on her honeymoon and felt really weird at home for ages after!
#kcakols
The checklist is a great idea. We never lock the windows and accudentiy left the door unlocked fir 4 days last week! Definitely going to be more careful from now on! #KCACOSL
Great tips as I’m always so anxious when we go away even for the night! We have cameras and an alarm as there has been some ‘trouble’ near us recently! I think its so important to make sure all windows and doors are locked and even in the summer, if I’m popping upstairs I close the back door to make sure we are safe!
#KCACOLS
We always use timers on lamps and a radio to make things seem a bit busier, and if we’re away for longer than a few days we have someone drop in past to pick up the post and check over the house. Great tips! #kcacols
Good advice! I do worry about this as like you say, as bloggers we often speak about going on holiday! We have a burglar alarm which we use religiously and a REALLY nosy neighbour which reassures me somewhat! #kcacols
Some good tips. Especially not advertising that you are going away, I don’t even mention on social media till I get back. When a friend of mine was away for a few weeks I checked her house every day and even put rubbish and recycling outside the house on the proper days. #KCACOLS
It is hard now as we do tend to put holidays on social media and it makes people aware we are away, some great tips here xx #KCACOLS
I can’t imagine coming home to find out that someone had been there. That would be terrible. It could only be worse being there as it was happening #KCACOLS
I literally just got back from our first real vacation EVER and I wish I had had this list to help me check over my home safety! Thanks for posting! #KCACOLS
Great tips! I’m always a little nervous about the house when we leave for extended periods of time, but I’ll remember these tips for next time! Thanks for sharing!
#KCACOLS
Great tips on a critically important topic. Just to piggyback on your comment about not advertising where you are, I also suggest that people not post pictures of their vacation on social media while they’re away. Even if you do not state where you are exactly, it could possibly be easily determined by crafty burglars-to-be that you are not at home. Thanks for posting this! #KCACOLS
Great tips. We’re quite lucky that my in-laws live very close so whenever we go away they come round to feed the cats and fish twice a day, and keep an eye on the place. I always think lights on a timer are a great idea.
#KCACOLS
This is a really useful post. Its all too easy to advertise on social media that your home is unoccupied. Luckily it has never happened to me. Thanks for sharing, #KCACOLS
My husband unplugs everything every night…drives me mad! Autmoatic lights are always a good one, and asking a neighbour to park on your drive if you have one and they don’t…#KCACOLS
These are great tips and we do most of these when we go away. I am incredibly paranoid about something happening to our home. I will always wonder if I’ve left the hob on when we’re 10 minutes into our journey and that sit fretting until there is a big enough distraction. There is so much good Smart Tech around now which makes this easier. Things like remote plug sockets are great for things like straighteners. We have Hive for our heating so can control the heating remotely but also now buy additional plug and lighting controllers. Hope you have a safe Christmas season! #KCACOLS
Great tips. My last house was broken into while I was out for the night and it took a while for the anger to go away. Its such an invasion. I cringe every time I see people posting on FB that they are away on vacation. Wait until you are back to post the pics! #KCACOLS
I think we follow all of these things but it doesn’t hurt to have a reminder. My son is obsessed with theft and fire at the moment as they’ve had the fire brigade and police in at school to speak to them, so he’s giving us regular tips too! #KCACOLS
Very well-written post. Keep up the good work! #KCACOLS
As we have cats as well so someone always needs to be around to check on them we always give a set of keys to friends who kindly look after our house. On a daily basis we get someone to look in to see if everything is st ok. To replenish the water, the cat food, change the cat litter and stay a little to give the cats a cuddle. We find this the best alternative to security systems and paying out for catteries. #KCACOLS
Oh, the good old light trick! I’ve tried the same with a radio too. And asking neighbours to put the bins out and bring them in again! #KCACOLS
Excellent tips. It’s so important to keep your house protected when you are away. I like the automated lights option, and definitely checking all kitchen appliances, I’m paranoid about the oven! Thanks for sharing!
#KCACOLS
Awesome tips! I don’t have a security home system but other tips are familiar for me but anyways I’m always a little bit stressed if everything will be ok:P
#KCACOLS
When I was a teen my house was broken into while I was on holidays. By someone we knew, As an adult we invested in a monitored home security system as well as 200 + lbs of dogs out of fear of it happening again. great tips. #KCACOLS
Our house was broken into once, we got an alarm installed straight away! I don’t think I’d feel safe now, without an alarm. We go through similar checks and literally unplug everything- even bedside lights! The fridge and freezer are the only things in our house trusted not to burst into flames while we are on our holidays!! #KCACOLS
Really useful advice. I check and double check everything’s turned off when we go out anywhere, it drives my husband mad at times but I feel really uneasy if I don’t do it! x #KCACOLS
We set up lights. Sometimes we have family stay when we are away too #kcacols
Great tips – I do agree about it being hard not to advertise you being away when you are a blogger! I am lucky that we have a really good neighbour who has a spare set of keys if need be and I have my sister who lives close by who pops in to check the house #KCACOLS
Great tips. I was burgled about 7 years ago in the afternoon when I was at work. It was very scary and distressing and I never want to go through that again. We now have a safe, and I also keep receipts of expensive items and photos as the insurance claim following the burglary was a nightmare. We also keep several online back ups of documents and photos as that was the thing I was gutted about loosing the most. #KCACOLS
wow.. love it..thanks for sharing this tips.. an keep update
These are great tips for keeping your home safe while traveling away! I like your 3rd advice about not advertising that you are leaving! I try to make sure not to post anything about traveling and leaving out of town on social media until after we get back. Great post, thanks for sharing!
Hi Franca,
Great article – as I can relate to some of the other commenters about the anxiety after leaving the house, that you buttoned everything up.
I thought I might add that a buying a home safe is a great way to protect valuables and documents against burglars as well as fire. It also beats a safe deposit box at the bank because items in your house are covered under your home owners policy.
Thanks Franca for your post.A smart home defines a high-security zone.A home security installations need to require some serious brainstorming to determine the best outcome. You don’t have to invest in a multi-million dollar surveillance system to keep an eye on your property and possessions.You just install modern locking systems which you can access from wherever you are and check everything is as it should be. This way you don’t need to ask neighbors to keep popping around to keep an eye on things unless there is a specific problem that arises.I found your article more interesting and useful as a tool which could help me explore my home security planning ideas in this sector.
We were burgled many years ago, and it’s definitely an experience I don’t want to repeat. If we go away, we arrange for friends to pop in to feed our cats a couple of times a day, and to make sure that any mail that’s been delivered does not pile up. In the past, I’ve even paid my neighbour’s children to feed the cats and play with them twice daily, which makes sure that the house is not left unattended.