It's everybody's worst nightmare – and not because of loss of goods, necessarily, but because of the feeling that your home isn't yours any more. People who have been robbed in their homes often say that, valuables being lost aside, they feel a strange sense of loss of control; in that their one refuge from everyday life, their home, has been broken into, not just physically, but mentally too.
So it is everybody's worst nightmare. But it does happen. In order to limit the possibilities of it happening to you, think about the following tips.
Keep valuable items out of sight
It seems like common sense. But the strange thing about the idea of 'valuable' items is that, with technology moving so rapidly, what people think of as valuable often falls behind the things that are actually valuable. Take, for example, your expensive-at-the time PC; it's worth less, now than your phone, if it's a newer smartphone. And yet, even though a phone is much, much easier to steal, people will leave them on windowsills, in plain view.
So, while it's true that most people do keep valuable items somewhere safe, it's just as true that they leave them in very plain sight. Don't check your emails on your laptop then leave it out on the dining table; and make sure that, after checking the news on your iPad, it's not left on the kitchen worktop.
Leave the radio on
A variation on the 'leave the lights' on theme, this one actually works. Again, it sounds silly, but noise is a natural deterrent; because often, a thief is looking to try their chances, and the potential that somebody is home, clearly, drastically reduces their chances.
If you leave the TV, the radio, or
some music on, it represents a zero-cost, effective deterrent. The great thing about music, too, is that – with shuffle switched on – the randomness of the sound implies that somebody really is in the building.
Cover yourself if there is a break in
Of course, whatever you do to prevent it, thefts do happen. In order to guard against that eventuality, at least in a financial sense, consider official cover. Contents and buildings insurance almost always cover theft, and websites like
comparethemarket.com offer good comparisons of the various policies, prices, and contingencies.
True, you can't replace the love you felt for the things inside your home, and money is no adequate compensation for years of memories; but it is, at least, some compensation.
