The festive season is here, when most people travel to either spend time with family upcountry or abroad, or to a holiday destination with immediate family to usher in the new year in style.
The biggest headache home owners grapple with is how to ensure that their homes and property are safe in their absence, whether they will be away for a few days, weeks, or even a month.
Just as you planned for your holiday break in advance, it is important to plan for your home’s security in advance.
Byron Adera, the Association of Corporate and Industrial Security Management Professionals of Kenya spokesperson, points out that incidents of burglaries, thefts and robberies have increased in the past two years, which could partly be due to the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy, which has left many without a source of income.
As a result, there are quite a number of opportunistic crimes, and the festive season, when most leave their homes unattended, presents such opportunities. In mind is break-ins and theft of fittings such as water piping and electricity connections.
Richard Tuta, a security expert and analyst, adds vandalism and malicious damage to property to this list.
“What should guide you on the level of security arrangement you need to put in place is the worth of your property and the level of insecurity in the neighbourhood they live in,” says Tuta.
Depending on where you live and how secure the neighbourhood is, the wall or live fence you have in place is enough to protect your property since it conceals your home from prying eyes.
Others may require added security features such as a CCTV camera to deter burglars, while in some cases, a watchman stationed at the gate will do.
Adera advises making your home less desirable to thieves and burglars by investing in measures or solutions that will make break-ins difficult. This means investing in fences, access control systems, sturdy locks, doors, windows, and securing valuables items in safes or moving them to safe deposit box.
Tuta advises having padlocks and other forms of locks on the inside, rather than on the outside, where everyone passing by is able to tell whether you’re in or not.
It is also advisable to ask a trusted neighbour to keep an eye on your home in the duration that you will be away, that way, they can raise alarm should they spot anyone trying to gain entry into your home.
“You can take this further and ask a relative or anyone else you trust to house-sit for you, or even better, lease out your home for the duration you will be away, especially if you will be travelling for a week or two, or even a month,” says Adera.
It also pays to keep information about your impending travel out of town and how long you will be away to yourself, just in case this information gets to the wrong ears. Also refrain from posting holiday pictures on social media in real time, because sophisticated robbers can use such information to map out their break-ins.
It is also important to display some form of activity within your compound and outside because this indicates there are people in the home, which discourages a break-in. You can, for instance, instruct your caretaker to clean up, say trim the fence and weed and water the flower beds within and outside the compound.
“If nothing is happening around your home for days, and if all is silent during the day and dark at night for days, it is an indicator that no one is in, an invitation for an intruder on the lookout for an easy target,” adds Tuta.
Another option is installing a home security system which secures entry points into your home with sensors that sound the alarm and alerts a security company when a burglar gains entry into your home.
