‘Rather safe than sorry’ should be your home security mantra

Hindsight is not something you want to be referring to when it comes to personal and home security.

Charnel Hattingh, Group Head of Marketing and Communications at Fidelity ADT, said to ensure you have no regrets about your family’s safety and that of your possessions, you have to be security conscious 100% of the time and never leave a gap for criminals to get what they want.

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While she agreed there is always room for improvement when it comes to vigilance and security systems, the one constant is that deterrents like these need human intervention to be effective.

“Vigilance is a heightened and trained awareness of your surroundings and security routines. To be effective, vigilance is solely reliant on you not dropping your guard,” Hattingh explained.

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“Likewise, your home security systems can only play their role if you use them the way they are meant to be used, and routinely so.”

A good example, as Hattingh pointed out, is that quick trip to the shop.

You’ve forgotten to buy bread and milk for lunches tomorrow and rush out with the food cooking on the stove to the corner garage shop – without arming the house alarm.

“People even leave their children home alone for a few minutes in a situation like this, without arming outside beams, for example. Chances are windows and doors may not be as secure as possible either since you have all been home and are unwinding from the day. Those few minutes you are away from home are just the gap an opportunistic criminal needs. It can take less than a minute or two to get onto a property, reach through or break a window and steal something.

“If the kids went with you to the shop they may have left their bikes on the driveway; another quick gain for a passing criminal.”

Load-shedding does wreak havoc with security systems and can leave homeowners vulnerable, but another important part of having no security regrets is that you are always sure your security system is in tip-top shape. This means checking the battery life on your alarm system and outdoor beams, that sensor lights are working properly, and that all panic buttons are working.

It is prudent to ask your security provider to do a thorough once-over of your home security and to advise you of any vulnerable areas so that you can get these addressed as soon as possible.

Here are 10 home security rules to live by from Fidelity ADT:

1. Arm your alarm whenever you leave the house.

2. Regularly check that your security systems are working the way they should be.

3. Don’t leave ladders, garden tools, or dustbins in the yard, lock them away.

4. Arm outside beams and areas you are not using when you get home, even if you are only home for an hour from the office.

5. Observe your street and driveway as you approach home to be on the lookout for suspicious people or cars.

6. Get to know your neighbours so that you can be each other’s eyes and ears.

7. Join a suburb WhatsApp group to keep up with crime trends in your area.

8. If you are away on holiday, make sure someone visits your property regularly to make it look lived in by switching on lights, opening and closing curtains, etc.

9. Cut away foliage that could interfere with beams and electric fencing and give criminals a cozy place to hide.

10. Never let strangers onto your property, no matter what reason they offer. Everyone on the property must know this rule.

“Rather be safe than sorry is the right attitude to have,” said Hattingh.
“A minute’s hesitation about arming the alarm or locking up properly can cost you dearly. Avoid this regret by making security a priority every day and for everyone in the family.”