- Upon discovering that your home has been broken into, your first response should be to call the police and have them clear your home. What may seem like a regular break-in could be something much worse. Some “thieves” may use the distraction to sneak into a closet or attic and set up camp. (Yes this has happened and it is called Phrogging).
- Take lots of pictures! Your insurance company will need these in their investigation, and it may help you find any items that were moved around when the police have finished their investigation as well.
Here are some proactive tips you can use to help minimize the losses in the case of a break-in:
- Take an inventory of your valuable items including serial numbers, receipts, etc. This may help the police recover your stolen items and it will help you keep track of exactly what went missing.
- Put any valuable items in a large safe. Small safes won’t do much good when they can just be picked up and carried away by would-be thieves. The time and effort it takes to move or break into a large safe is more than your average burglar is willing (or able) to go through.
- If you are unable to acquire a large safe, consider hiding valuables in unordinary places or using decoy items such as empty safes and prop jewelry to fool thieves into thinking they got all the expensive items. There are also a variety of products on the internet such as cans with hidden compartments that can be used to store small items. Most thieves won’t think to check your pantry for valuables.
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