Police departments often remind the public that the winters holidays and any other day when people tend to be away from home are prime time for home burglaries.

It follows that State Farm advises policyholders to take extra home-security precautions before they go on vacation.
Inside the house, the insurance carrier recommends:

  1. Installing or setting timers on interior lights;
  2. Protecting against power surges by unplugging electronics and installing a surge protector;
  3. Testing smoke alarms;
  4. Avoiding social media posts about your travel status;
  5. Alerting your security company;
  6. Securing valuables;
  7. Lowering the thermostat, and changing its battery;
  8. Protecting pipes;
  9. Locking all doors and windows; and
  10. Considering a house sitter.
“Make it look like there's someone at your home,” Ohio Police Officer Aaron Morgan advised homeowners during a WLWT5 news interview about holiday theft. "If you have a friend or a family member that can come by and even turn the lights on and off. I've even parked my cars in neighbors' driveways to make it look like there's someone there."

In the spite of the fact that home burglaries have been trending down in recent years, some locations are statistically more likely to sustain a burglary attempt.

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Elana Ashanti Jefferson

Elana Ashanti Jefferson serves as ALM's PropertyCasualty360 Group Chief Editor. She is a veteran journalist and communications professional. Reach her by sending an e-mail to [email protected].

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