Hi All, Just a friendly note to remind everyone to be extra vigilant in the run up to halloween and firework night, burglary and property crime increase by up to 160% in this period and a good time for burglars to target properties is on bonfire night its self, as getting through a front door is usually covered by the sound of fireworks. Burglaries also increase in this period right up until Christmas (just after the clocks go back and the evenings are darker earlier). A few tips for home security are below; Give you home the 'lived in' look, use timers that turn on lights, or leave lights and a radio or television on if you plan to be out all of the evening. Lock all doors and windows when you go out (and when you're in), make sure that ground floor windows have key operated locks and that they're used. Also if you have a UPVC (Double Glazed) front door, when leaving ensure that the handle is pulled up and the door double locked using the key - there have been a number of burglaries where doors are not double locked and these can be easily slipped. - When going to bed, ensure that you double lock your front door and keep your keys out of sight but close enough to the door incase the event of a fire. Keys close to the front door and visible through the letterbox can be fished through and this is becoming more common as vehicle security increases and most thefts of vehicles are now by using the owners keys. Cut back hedges and overgrown trees to leave your property exposed to your neighbours, burglars love hiding places and a tall hedge provides the perfect cover for a burglar to work without gaining any attention. If you have a burglar alarm, USE IT! Many people only use their alarms when they're away for the weekend or when they go on holiday, get into the habit of your whole family using it each day. Remember that if you've told your insurance company that you have an alarm and its not set and the worst does happen, you might have issues with getting a pay out. If you don't have an alarm consider investing in one, professionally installed alarms are more affordable that you might think, and systems can be installed in 3-4 hours. Speak to us if you're considering a system. If you'd like your home security reviewed, please don't hesitate to get in contact with me, or via our website HensonSecurity.com Happy Halloween & Fireworks!