How to Prevent Home Insurance Claims

There’s nothing worse than coming home to find that your living space has been burglarized. While having homeowners insurance softens the blow, you would have been far better off had the incident never happened in the first place. Try these steps to prevent home burglary from happening to you. 

Get a Home Alarm System and Advertise It 
It’s important that you make it very clear to a potential burglar that you have a state of the art alarm system. Deterring a burglar from attempting a break-in is preferable to having your alarm activated after a break-in. Most alarm systems provide window stickers or yard signs for this purpose. They should be placed at the most common entry points where the thief will plainly see them. 

These entry points are: 

• All external doors. If a thief can walk into an unlocked or poorly locked door, then it would be his first preference since door entry is less conspicuous. Place a sticker on each outside door. Don’t forget to include sliding doors, garage doors and doors to the basement. 

• Ground floor windows. Glass can easily be broken for entry. Place a sticker on every ground floor window. If windows can be accessed by an outside deck, sticker them too. 

• Place stickers at the correct height. Stickers are a form of deterrence which means they must be seen by the thief to be effective. On windows, they should be placed at eye level. On doors, either place them near the door handle or at eye level. 

Common Burglar Entry Points Should Be Well Lit and Visible 

Any external lights, such as deck and porch lights, that illuminate doors and windows should be left on at night. Avoid having anything near doors and ground floor windows that can provide cover for a thief to hide in while he attempts a break-in. For example, high hedges provide excellent cover. 

Never Leave Tools or Ladders Outside 
These provide convenient tools for the burglar. Ladders provide access to your roof and second story windows. Tools such as hammers, screw drivers etc. can be used to break into doors and windows. 

Never Allow Your Property to Fall Into a State Of Disrepair 
Ever notice how abandoned buildings have smashed windows and broken doors? The easiest target is one where there’s no one home. If your property looks unkempt, a thief may mistakenly think that the owner hasn’t been around for a very long time. 

There is much wisdom to the saying that prevention is the best protection. Take this to heart. It will make life easier and can even help keep your insurance premiums down.