Home Security Mistakes

You may think your home is security, but security experts say there are simple mistakes nearly every homeowner makes.  Those mistakes could paint a target on your home for thieves. 

“At the end of the day it is either people being over confident or misinformed,” said Bob Walker of TNT Security Services.  Walker says he gets a call often after crooks break in.

“The most surprising thing to me is just the straight ahead attack.  They will kick in the front door or back door in the broad daylight.”

While many people may think lock picking or glass cutting are common place for crafty criminals, Walker says that mainly only happens in the movies.  In real life, thieves like it simple.  “It does not take a whole lot of effort for an adult to just kick in a door.”

If the door doesn’t work, windows will.  Walker says most homes have picture windows or glass doors in the back.  Combine those easy entrances with large decorative items that double as glass breakers and a criminal could be in and out in no time.  

In the overconfidence category, Walker says many people he talks to think their dog will protect their home while they are out.  But there’s a problem with relying on Fido.  “They'll usually have a package of hot dog.  They just let the dog in the back yard, dog goes for the hot dogs, and now they have free reign of the house,” Walker said.  “No matter how mean the dog is; he's always hungrier than he is mean.”

Walker says there really is no way to keep burglars out if they want in your home.  However you can minimize the damage they can do and the amount of time it takes for police to arrive.  Glass break detectors will work off sound to set off the alarm if they break a window.  And having a cellular backup on your alarm system will foil thieves who hoping cutting the phone or cable lines before breaking in will cut off your alarm’s ability to call for backup.

Common sense goes a long way in preventing a break in.  Walker says some people park in front of their homes, but leave garage door openers in plain sight.  “So they smash the window and they can not only get into the car, but they can get into the house at that point.”
Walker says besides protecting your home from thieves, homeowners sometimes need to be protected from security system salesmen.  The extras like glass break detectors and cellular backups are not standard equipment and do cost extra.  Though Walker says those extras and other equipment may be packaged by companies as free.  “It’s not free, they're just financing it for you and they're putting you in a really long contract and they can raise the rates on you before the contract is up.”  This means in the end you’ll pay more for the freebies than you would have if you paid for them in full up front. 

Posted: Monday, February 18 2013, 09:43 PM CST