Home and Property Safety

Interior

• Lock all doors and windows when you leave or even when home alone. Especially basement and ground level windows and patio doors.
• Ensure that locks are changed if you are a new tenant or owner, install deadbolts on doors and a peep hole in your front door.
• Consider installing an alarm system and/or security cameras and be sure they are in working order.
• Insure your home and its contents.
• Store valuables in safety lock boxes such as passports, jewellery, coins etc.

• Store credit cards, identification, and other valuables in a safe place and take photo copies of all important documents.
• Take an inventory of your possessions, such as all electronic equipment and tools. Pictures, video and receipts are a good way of doing this.
• Store your car and house keys in a safe, secure and easy to access place.
• Do not leave purses, jewellery and other valuables visible through the front door.
• Use curtains on your windows to prevent potential thieves from getting a look inside.
• Before turning your house key over to a cleaner or other service person, ensure they are from a reputable agency.
• Ask for credentials from any sales-person before they enter your home.
• Shred personal papers that you no longer require.

Exterior

• Have newspapers and mail picked up, lawns cut or snow removed by a trusted neighbour or friend, when you are away from home.
• Buy fake home security decals if you cannot afford a real system.
• Install ‘dummy' surveillance cameras if you do not wish to install the real ones.
• Motion-censored lights outside your home are a great deterrent but make sure to hide the wiring.
• Keep shrubs and trees trimmed so that doors and windows are in clear view for neighbours to see a potential break in.
• If you lose your keys, change the locks immediately.
• Keep ladders and garbage pails locked up. Never leave them in the back or front yard.
• Take your name off the mailbox and your home.
• Even if you do not have a dog, put a sign up that says beware of dog to deter strangers from entering your property.
• Always keeps tools locked up as these tools can be turned against you and used to break into your home.

• Do not leave notes on your door that say ‘come around to the back', ‘leave parcel at the door' etc.
• Do not hide spare keys under your door mat, or in the mailbox.
• Install a secure locking mailbox.

Vacation

• Do not post on social media that you are going away and avoid posting vacation photos until you have returned home.
• Avoid being obvious when packing your car for a vacation.
• Set a timer to switch various household lights and sprinkler systems on at night and off in the morning.
• If you frost or cover your garage windows, burglars won't be able to tell if your car is gone.
• Make sure that all possible entrances to your house are locked properly.
• Use a metal bar or piece of wood on sliding doors and windows to make prying them open difficult.
• Leave a key for your home with someone you trust.
• Contact your alarm company and advise them when you will be away.
• Make sure trusted neighbours know you are going away and are left with an emergency contact number.
• A few dollars to a neighbour for yard maintenance can be money well spent.
• Put your mail and newspaper deliveries on hold, but also arrange with someone to pick up any mail or newspapers that end up on your doorstep or in your mailbox.
• In general, with the help of friends and neighbours try to avoid the appearance that no one is home.