Going Away for a While or on Vacation?

by **Admin** Fri Aug 10, 2012 10:07 pm

1. Don't leave a note anywhere announcing your absence and when you will return. Don't have any publicity on your trip.

2. Cancel all deliveries of newspapers, milk, mail (or arrange with someone to pick-up these things every day) to prevent accumulation of such items - it is a dead giveaway that noone is home.

3. Install an automatic timer to turn on the bathroom light and another light in the house every evening while you are away.

4. Do not pull the curtains or drapes while you are away - leave the windows the way they always are when you are there.

5. Make sure all windows and doors and other possible points of entry are nailed, screwed or locked.

6. Ask a neighbor to watch the place and perhaps check it daily while you are gone.

7. Notify the police you are leaving and when you are returning; ask them to check the house (or apartment) for you. They do this as a courtesy and will leave you a note advising you of each time they stopped by in your absence. Be sure to tell them when you have returned.

8. Make sure you do not leave tools, ladders, wash, etc., outside the house or garage.

9. Turn the telephone bell or chile down before you leave ... an unanswered telephone alerts someone that noone is home.

10. Make sure you have arranged to have the grass mowed or snow shoveled while gone ... this too is a giveaway that noone is home.

11. Do not leave your keys or any form of identification in your car if you have parked it anywhere while away (including if you parked it at an airport parking lot); this is a great place for burglars to learn who isn't in town.

12. Carry very little cash with you when traveling; rely on traveler's checks and selected credit cards.

13. Bring only those valuables with you that you will need on the trip; use hotel safes to store them if staying in a hotel.

14. Make sure insurance adequately covers theft.

15. Use a travelers lock for hotel or motel doors.

16. Always keep passports with you when traveling abroad.

17. Consider an alarm for your car and install an auxiliary turn lock.

18. Be careful of anyone flagging you down on the highway and of hitch-hikers.

19. Pick-up your luggage quickly at airports; pieces not pick-up right away are easily marked for theft.

20. Keep luggage and other valuables in the trunk; when stopped at restaurants and other public places, such items inside the car are tempting to thieves.

21. Keep valuables stored out of sight in compartments and keep the curtains closed when your recreation vehicle is parked.

22. Do not keep your recreation vehicle packed and ready to go when it is at your home, even if it is for overnight.

23. Get the best door and window locks possible for the vehicle.

24. Do not stroll off the camp sight leaving gear and equipment (or an unlocked vehicle).

25. Permanently install a small security chest or safe inside the recreation vehicle.

26. Chain your recreation vehicle to a tree when possible; also use a "deadball" hitch.

27. Paint a name on your vehicle in large letters and for added security, paint a large identification number or letter combination on the roof.

28. Always carry your vehicle registration and any other identifying data with you (not in the vehicle).

29. Avoid parking along isolated roads ... other recreation vehicles offer added security in most places.

30. If building a new home, add on a garage that houses the recreation vehicle to provide addded secrity agaist theft or vandalism.