Did you know that there are approximately 901 thefts per 100,000 people annually? But there are ways you can keep yourself from being part of this statistic. Most people choose to protect their homes by installing alarms. Others rely on strong doors with complex locks. But those who are vigilant know that robbers watch homes and wait for the right moment to strike. There are ways you can derail robbers by paying attention to details that can be connected with theft even if they may seem insignificant at first sight. Here is a list of signals that you should be on the lookout for.
Be careful of what you dispose of. We tend to throw unnecessary papers into the garbage that contain important information like your name, date of birth, working place, passport number and other data. This data is exactly what robbers need to use for their own purposes. For this reason, it's important that you tear up any papers with personal information into small pieces before throwing them out.
2. The disappearance of your dog
Dogs that guard your house are a burden for robbers. It is for this reason they may try to get rid of your pet by drawing it outside when you are not at home. After a day or two, robbers will come back no longer afraid of being bitten by the dog. Of course, a missing dog doesn't always signify an upcoming robbery, but you shouldn't exclude this option either.
In order to prevent owners of a home from coming home earlier, it is possible that robbers drain their cars' gasoline, causing them trouble to get home. In the worst case, you won't be able to get to the petrol station. This means that you'll get back home even later. So if you are sure you had a full gas tank and today it's almost empty, ask someone to look after your home until you come back.
4. A new janitor
Are you using the services of a cleaning company and it's always the same worker who comes to clean your space? Then the appearance of a new one should make you worry. This is especially true if the company didn't say anything about it. The new janitor may potentially be a robber who wants to inspect the home for valuables. The best thing you could do in this case is to call the company and ask if any changes have been made and why the previous worker has been replaced.
Some criminals throw stones at the windows of a car or a home in order to check whether the owners are home and if the alarm will work. If none of the owners or the neighbors come out to check what happened and the police don't show up either it may help robbers calculate the best time for the robbery. If you are home and someone broke any glass, call the police right away.
6. Problems with light
If you live in a private house and there are lanterns with motion sensors installed in your yard be sure to check them in case of malfunction right away. Slightly unscrewed but not burned light bulbs are a signal that someone wants to sneak into your house and stay unnoticed.
There are tactics that robbers use to mark easy-to-sneak-into houses and flats with the help of commercial flyers and stickers. Any flyers you see, best get rid of them right away. If you are going to leave for vacation, ask your neighbors to take away not only ad booklets and stickers but your mail as well. If you see a pile of papers in the mailbox is an obvious sign that the owners are not at home and this gives a green light to robbers.
8. Strange marks
Any suspicious marks you see that appear on the door of your flat or house, or garden lanterns, or simply near your home, be sure to erase. This is another method for robbers to mark a house that is easy to sneak into or one where the owners are absent.
So as to find out at what time the owners of a home are absent, robbers call the home phone and drop the call. If a small child picks up, they can try to get some information from them. For this reason, it's important that your kids know they shouldn't say anything to strangers. It is also important that you don't ignore repeatedly dropped call. So speak to the police in advance.
10. A broken lock
A malfunctioned lock or scratch on the door are signs that somebody has already tried to get into your house. So take action right away, call the police and change the locks for more reliable ones and think about installing an alarm.
