Six Steps to Protecting Your Home Right Now
Your home should be a safe-haven for you and the ones that your love. Here are six simple steps to protect your home right now:
#1 – Don’t Lose Your Identity
Identity theft has become the fastest-growing crime in America. Here are some simple ways you can protect yourself from become a potential victim:
- Don’t give out personal information over the phone during an unsolicited call. Always ask the caller to send you information in writing.
- Shred all of your important documents. Identity thieves will go through your trash to retrieve copies of your checks, credit card and bank statements, mail, and other personal records.
- Never carry your Social Security card, birth certificate, or passport on you. These items should be stored in a safe place.
- Monitor your bank accounts and credit reports. Identity theft can go on for years before it is noticed, so carefully check your credit report at least once a year and your bank statements each month.
- Consider protecting yourself with fraud expense coverage, which can be added to your homeowners policy.
#2 Protect Your Home From Theft During Vacations
According to the Burglary Prevention Council, home burglaries boom in the summer months, often when families are away. Here are a few tips to ensure that your summer vacation doesn’t become a working holiday for a burglar:
- Suspend newspaper and mail delivery until you return
- Lock and fasten all doors and windows. Use deadbolt locks on doors
- Trim shrubs so they don’t hide doors or windows
- Leave a few shades open to maintain a lived-in look
- Install outside lights or motion detector lights
- Leave a generic phone or email message that doesn’t suggest you are gone, and turn down the ringer on your phone
- Install and use security bars on sliding glass doors to keep thieves from lifting doors off their tracks.
- Set light timers so your house appears occupied.
- Add a security system. Warning decals may deter intruders.
#3 Fall Proof Your Home
Falls are the leading cause of accidental death and injury at home, with the elderly and children at greatest risk. Here are a few simple steps you can take to prevent falls throughout your home:
- Organize your kitchen cabinets so that things are within easy reach.
- Use a sturdy step stool to reach tall cabinets.
- Clear clutter and electrical cords out of traffic paths.
- Illuminate porches and walkways
- Clear stairs, sidewalks, and your driveway of leaves, ice, and snow. Repair cracks, holes, and uneven surfaces.
- Use night-lights in hallways
- Use rubber mats or adhesive safety strips or decals in tubs and showers
- Install grab bars in bathrooms and showers
- Use extra caution around water
#4 Detecting Trouble: Carbon Mononxide: The Silent Danger
You can’t taste it, smell it, or hear it, but carbon monoxide (CO) is one of the most deadly risks for homeowners. Here are a few steps you can take to protect your family.
- Buy a CO alarm with the Underwriters Laboratories’ UL mark
- Install alarms within 15 feet of all sleeping areas and on every floor of your home.
- Test batteries monthly and replace them annually.
- Don’t leave a vehicle running in the garage, even when the garage door is open. Never use a generator or charcoal grill inside a home, garage, vehicle, or tent.
#5 Riding Out The Storms: Steps to Take in a Weather Emergency
No one can accurately predict the weather or the damage a disaster can cause to your home. You can, however, take a few precautions to be ready for them:
- Practice family fire drills to determine what to do in a natural disaster
- Become familiar with your community’s severe weather warning systems.
- Review insurance policies. Take photos or videotapes of your belongings. Store your home inventory and key documents in a safe deposit box.
- Assemble a Portable Emergency Kit. Include a whistle, a first aid kit, pet supplies, matches (in a waterproof container), a radio, chlorine bleach for disinfectant, cash, blankets, flashlights, and nonperishable food items and water to last 3-7 days.
#6 Don’t Fuel the Fire at Home
The best offense for a fire strategy is a good defense. Here are a few simple steps you and your family can take in the event of a fire in your home.
- Plot your escape. Asa family, draw a floor plan of your house and note at least two ways out of each room. Pick a meeting spot outside, such as a mailbox or light post.
- Hold fire drills. Do them at least twice a year – pretend an exit is blocked. Once you’ve mastered daytime drills try one at night.
- Prepare for smoke. To breathe the cleanest air, crawl on hands and knees, keeping your head one to two feet off of the ground. For more advice, visit libertymutual.com/lm/firedrill
©2008 Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, 175 Berkley Street, Boston MA 02116. All rights reserved.
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