Safety Tips

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Personal Security                    Financial                         Hinder Burglars

Child Safety                     Emergency Preparedness

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While Alone At Home
 

 Women living alone, use first initial rather than first name on Mail box or phone book

 Relinquish only your car key to garage or parking lot attendants, etc. Always retain custody of house key.

 Be highly selective in whom you admit (Offenders are often friends or acquaintances of their victims).

 Require identification of repairmen, servicemen, etc. (Offenders sometimes pose as phone repairmen, policemen, fire inspectors, etc.).

 Do not let phone caller know you are alone.

 Keep doors and windows locked and keep shades or drapes drawn after dark.

Preparing to go out

This advice comes from an attorney so you can take it to the bank:

1. Next time you order checks have only your initials (instead of first name) and last name put on them. If someone takes your checkbook, they will not know if you sign your checks with just your initials or your firstname, but your bank will know how you sign your checks.

 2. Do not sign the back of your credit cards. Instead, put "PHOTO ID REQUIRED".

3. When you are writing checks to pay your credit card accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the "For" line. Instead, put just the last four numbers. The credit card company knows the rest of the number but anyone who might handle your check as it passes through all the check processing channels won't have access to it.

4. Put your work phone number on your checks instead of your home phone. If you have a P.O. Box, use that instead of your home address. If you do not have a P.O. Box, use your work address. Never have your Social Security number printed on your checks. You can add it if necessary. If you have it printed, anyone can get it.

5. Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Do both sides of each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place. This is also a good idea to do if you have a passport if you travel either here or abroad.

6. In the event your wallet is stolen: Have a master list of all the toll free numbers for each of your credit cards. Keep it in a safe place to quickly use to call and cancel each card.

-File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your credit cards, etc., were stolen. This proves to credit providers you were diligent, and this is a first step toward an investigation.

-MOST IMPORTANT! Call the three national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and Social Security number. This alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen, and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit.

Here are the numbers you will need to contact if your wallet is stolen:

1. Equifax 1-800-525-6285

2. Experian (formerly TRW) 1-888-397-3742

3. Trans Union 1-800-680-7289

4. Social Security Administration (fraud line) 1-800-269-0271

Cell Phone and Financial Safety:

If  you list names in your cell phone as hubby, daughter, mom, etc. you might want to change this after hearing this story.  A client had her handbag stolen. It contained her cell phone, credit cards,debit card, wallet, etc... When she called her hubby 20 minutes later from a pay phone to tell him what had happened, he said "I received a text from you asking for our Pin number and replied a little while ago."

Hinder Burglars:

Buy timers for lights and applicance. When you're out of town, you may leave the lights on so it looks like someone is at home but we recommend placing the timers on radios or televisions as well as lights. Look for a timer that can be set for random on and off times (one brand called Leviton is available for approx. $40 per timer). Burglars staking out your neighborhood can figure out if the same lights are left on or coming on the same time each evening.

Don't count on your dog to be the best defense. Barking dogs can be a good burglar deterrent due to the noise, but don't count on your dog to attack a burglar and protect your home.  Most of us want our dogs to be friendly to strangers and if a burglar suspects there may be a dog in the house, he may even bring dog treats to keep your pet busy while he carries away your valuables.

Lock up any weapons. Weapons, especially guns, are very attractive to thieves, so if you keep any in your house, keep them in a safe, just as you would other valuables.

Close the shades. Closing all shades or curtains on your first floor will ensure that a burglar won't be able to see if there is anything worth stealing in your home. Make sure, however, to keep a few shades open on other floors of your home to make it look as if someone is home.  Homes that look completely closed is another sign to a thief that no body is home.

Separate your jewelry. Keeping two jewelry boxes may fool a thief. If you put your casual, inexpensive jewelry in one box that you keep out on your dresser, put your nice, expensive jewelry in a box hidden somewhere else or in a safe. the burglar may be fooled by the cheap stuff and may not go looking for more.

Lock up valuables. This is pretty obvious, but you have to be smart about how you do it. Most thieves know homowners' typical hiding places, like corners of closets, under the bed, in coffee cans. Instead, keep important documents, like passports, Social Security, etc. cards in a bank safe-deposit box or in a heavy-duty combination safe that you can bolt to the floor. Gardall has one that starts around $300.

Foil a resale. Mainly, thieves want to sell the stuff they steal. You can make it harder for them by buying an engraving pen, available at most hardware stores and marking expensive items prominently with your initials and driver's license number (NEVER your Social Security number !).  Do this for televisions, computers and other electronics. Many pawnshops won't accept items that have been ID-engraved or are required to report them to the police. You will also have a better chance of recovering your stolen items. 

Invest in an alarm system. It has been investegated and proven that alarms used in combination with other tactics, can reduce the possibility of a burglary by as much as 66 per cent. All monitored systems rely on a phone line, but more modern systems have a backup service that uses cellular technology or digital radio if the line is cut or the power goes out. This is a very important service to have if you invest in a system. Expect to pay about $350 for installation and around $35 a month in monitoring fees.

Outside your home-

Make sure your landscaping isn't an accomplice. Overgrown landscaping can provide ideal cover for someone trying to break into your home. Homeowners should prune back shrubbery from windows, doors, and walkways. Also, inspect the climability of tall trees near second-floor windows. Prune these as well so burglars don't have a ready-to-use ladder.

Lighting is everything. Every door to the outside should be lit with at least a 40-watt bulb so neighbors and police driving by can spot any suspicious activity. The best option is to install a motion-detecting  light, available at most hardware and home improvement stores for around $20. Thieves want anonymity so if a spotlight shines on them the moment they step onto your property, they'll keep moving. Random timers can also be a good idea and you can buy one that allows the light to turn on when it gets dark.

Make sure windows and sliding doors are secure. Look for windows that are made with laminated glass, which is not as breakable as tempered glass. Also, sliding glass doors are surprisingly easy for thieves to jimmy open, so put a metal bar or solid-wood dowel in the track to secure the door when it's closed.

Use reliable locks. In about 32 percent of home burglaries, there is no sign of forced entry, meaning that the thief entered through an unlocked door or window. According to authorities, it takes most burglars less than 60 seconds to get inside your home, and they typically enter through the front door. For all exterior doors, plus the door that leads from the garage into your home, install and use high-quality deadbolts, such as ASSA Abloy, Medeco or the Schlage Primus, which starts at about $140. If the lock is near a window or within 40 inches of a glass pane, install a double-cylinder dead bolt, which can be opened only with a key from the inside and outside. The best idea is to use a locksmith who is a certified dealer of the brand you want. You can find one by visiting the manufacturer's Web site.

Fortify your doors. Most thieves won't use a battering ram to get inside your home, but you still don't want flimsy doors that are easy to break into. Exterior doors, including the garage door, should be solid wood, fiberglass or steel, and the hinges should be on the inside. If you do have exterior hinges and don't wish to move them, authorities suggest using a locking pin that makes hinges more difficult to remove.

Put only your street number on the outside of your home. Some thieves use a very old trick where they look up your phone number using your name and address and call to find out if anyone is home. This is why you should never display your name on your mailbox or elsewhere outside your home. But always make sure your street number is readily visible so emergency personnel can locate your home if necessary.

Fake an alarm system if you don't have one. A lawn sign or sticker advertising an alarm system is a good deterrent, although the real deal is best. Try to get a spare sign or sticker from a friend who has one, as good thieves can spot fakes.

Put away clutter. Toys, lawn tools and ladders left lying about can all be used to break into your home. Keeping your home clear of clutter will leave a thief with less to work with.

Most hide-a-key tricks don't work. Thieves know all about the fake rock or hiding the key under the doormat or above the doorjamb. If you need to have a key outside your home for a family member or friend, use a steel combination lockbox designed especially for keys, such as the GE AccessPoint KeySafe at about $40. Bolt it to something on the property that is easy for everyone in your family to access. They're so reliable that you can even install it right next to your door.

Protect your garage door opener. This is an easy way burglars can get into your home, so make sure not to leave your garage door opener in an unlocked car for a thief to snatch.

Censor your garbage. Your garbage can advertise a lot about you, such as your name, phone number, financial details and whether you have bought anything of worth lately. Shred all documents with your name or other information on them and cut up any boxes for big-ticket items, such as flat-screen TVs, before putting them out for trash day.

While You're on Vacation-

Ask a friend or family member to watch the house. Enlist a trusted friend, neighbor or family member to keep an eye on the house. you might even ask them to remove any packages, shovel the walkways, mow the lawn or park a car in the driveway. The less signs that you aren't at home, the better.

Stop delivery of newspapers and mail or have someone collect them. Nothing says "we're on vacation" like piled-up newspapers or an overflowing mailbox.

Don't leave messages on your e-mail or voicemail indicating you are away. Don't use the "automatic reply" on your e-mail to tell people you are away and always keep a generic message on your answering machine or voicemail. You can also use call forwarding to screen calls while you're on the road.

Child Safety:

While Alone At Home

·  Do Not Permit anyone except relatives into your house. ·  Do not let a phone caller know you are alone ·  Do not let anyone who comes to your door know that you are alone. ·  Do not talk at length with anyone who comes to your door, nor with an unknown phone caller. ·  Keep shades or drapes closed at night. ·  Keep all doors and windows locked. ·  Write down the phone number of the State Police or Local Police, the phone number of a neighbor and the phone number where your parents can be reached in an emergency. 

While Out Playing

·  Do not play around water wells or other deep holes. ·  Do not play around electric transformers or touch power lines. ·  Do not walk, play upon or cross railroad tracks. ·  Do not hitch rides on railroad cars. ·  Do not climb structures such as coal tipples, powerline towers, or water towers. ·  Do not play near ponds or rivers. ·  Do not get into abandoned storage tanks, refrigerators, or iceboxes. ·  Do not play in abandoned buildings. ·  Never play with, or touch, dangerous things like matches, guns, knives, or other hazardous objects.