Christmas is a special time for families and friends to get together, and every family dreams of the perfect white Christmas, filled with kindness, peace of mind, compassion and celebrating with loved ones.  Unfortunately however, most burglars view the festive period as an opportunity to break into our homes.

Victims are mainly targeted for cash, credit cards and easily sold valuables such as jewelry, small gadgets and electronics – anything that can be swapped into cash easily.

If you are going out for Christmas shopping, make sure all of the doors and windows are locked properly and try to keep the amount of time your home is unoccupied down to a minimum. Even if you are planning to see your next door neighbour for just five minutes, it is still advisable to ensure that your home is secure, at all times.

Having time off from work and with the schools closed, many of us take this opportunity to escape for our holidays. Before doing so, in order to avoid a Christmas misfortune, please make sure your property is safe and secure by following the few tips listed below.

• Make sure newspaper/milk delivery is cancelled;
• Propose that a neighbour parks on your driveway to create the impression that someone is at home;
• Arrange to have your letters/parcels collected to avoid a stuffed letter-box;
• Get yourself some light timers which can be very handy in creating an occupied appearance;
• Set your television on timer so it can be switched on and off automatically during certain hours;
• Do not to leave clues about you absence through descriptive telephone answering machine messages such as “we’re away at grandma’s place for the Christmas holidays”.
• Make sure that if it is snowing during your absence, someone takes care of cleaning the pathway.
• Avoid leaving messages on Facebook or Twitter before going away, it will be more wise to talk about it on your return.
• Ask a family member, friend or neighbour to keep an eye on your property.

Remember, burglars target homes which offer a quick ‘get in, get out’ opportunity. If your property is equipped with visual deterrent such as security grilles and door gates, you are less likely to be a burglary victim. For more information about how you can secure your home, please speak to RSG Security team on  0208 123 1088.