The summer months are a great time for a family getaway, whether you’re headed across North Carolina or across the country. While you’re gone, your home is vulnerable to emergencies, natural disasters, and dishonest people. Before you head out of town, make sure you’ve done everything you can to protect your home.
Keep Your Maintenance Schedule
If you regularly have a lawn crew, pool service, or house cleaner in your home, maintain that schedule while you’re gone. It will give your home the appearance that someone is there regularly, fooling would-be robbers into leaving it alone.
Ask Someone to Check on Your Home
This could be a friend, family member, or neighbor that you trust. Make sure to compensate them for their time. They can bring in the mail and any Amazon deliveries, take the trash can to the curb and bring it back, and water the flowers. They’ll be an extra set of eyes in case anything goes wrong — like a leaky roof — and create activity in your home so no one thinks it’s empty.
Use Lighting Smartly
On the outside of your home, install a motion-sensor floodlight. When anyone comes up to your home at night, it’ll turn on, lighting up the area. Thieves hate that. Inside your home, set a timer for your interior lights — or use smart lights, like Philips Hue and an app on your smartphone — to have them turn on and off at set times. This will give the impression that someone is home.
Think About Energy Costs and Power Surges
If your home electronics like your TVs and computers aren’t on a surge protector, now is always the right time to get one. But while you’re gone, you may consider disconnecting your electronics, in case of a power surge or lightning strike during a bad storm.
At the same time, don’t turn off your air conditioner completely — the humidity can create a mold problem. Instead, set your AC to a higher temperature than normal so it uses less energy but still comes on occasionally to keep the humidity down.
Don’t Advertise Your Vacation on Social Media
Once you get back to town, share all the pictures and talk about what an amazing time you had. But before you leave and while you’re gone, keep a low profile. And definitely don’t check-in anywhere on Facebook. This is a big advertisement to anyone who can see your social media profile that you’re not at home and won’t be for a while. You never know who’s watching.
Add Extra Home Security
At minimum, lock all doors, windows, and the garage door. Then double-check yourself before you leave. You also don’t want to leave a key outside while you’re gone. Thieves will look in any place that might hold a key — and they’ll find it eventually.
Consider adding an additional home security system with cameras and direct connection to emergency responders if something goes wrong. You can also look for a system that lets you monitor your home from your smartphone so you’re always connected.
Before you go on vacation, make sure your home insurance policy is current. If it’s been several years since you thought about your coverage, it probably needs to be updated. Anything can happen while you’re away. Make sure your homeowners policy will cover you when it does. Contact Charlotte Insurance today.