Five ways to protect your home before your holiday

Summer is here, and summer plans are kicking off.

According to our latest Household Money Index June 2024, the average UK adult is invited to 29 events from the start of May to the end of September and attends an average of 26, and of course many people will be flying out to find some sun elsewhere for a well-deserved holiday.

This means that many homes spend a lot of time unoccupied during the summer, which leaves them vulnerable to all kinds of mishaps.

To help you protect your home during the holidays, we've put together five tips for home security and safety to prevent the worst from happening.

1. Hide the tell-tale signs you’re away

Nothing says ‘I’m an empty house, break in and help yourself’ like a pile of letters or packages visibly building up on the doormat, leaflets dangling out of the letterbox or bottles of milk lining up outside your front door.

So, maybe put a pause on your online shopping for a while to prevent any packages being delivered while you're away, or at least outline in the delivery instructions a secure, hidden place for them to be delivered to rather than being left on your door step.

With certain courier services and delivery companies you can also easily divert your delivery online if you aren't home to accept it.

You also have the option to pause any deliveries through Royal Mail with their  Keepsafe service. Royal Mail will hold your mail for up to two months if you're away for a small fee. Just be aware it takes five days to set up, and this service doesn't cover any mail from other delivery companies or couriers.

Alternatively, consider asking a trusted neighbour to manage your mail and clean up any mail on your doorstep while you're away.

Don't forget to also cancel other services like milk delivery and any other grocery deliveries to keep your home safer and save you a bit of money too.

2. Turn everything off at the socket

Make sure that every single appliance except for your faithful fridge/freezer is turned off at the wall and not left on stand-by. Not only does this reduce the risk of fires, it’ll also help you save energy and save money on your utility bills.

While you’re at it, check your central heating, if you have it. You could turn off any automatic time-sets and avoid heating an empty house, and check you’ve not left any fires or free-standing heaters on.

3. Check your home insurance cover

If you have a home insurance policy, you should check the cover details for unoccupied properties, especially if you're planning a long holiday.

Many standard home insurance policies will typically keep your home insured for up to 30 to 60 days while it's unoccupied, but this isn't always the case. This is because the risks to your home increase when you're not there to keep an eye on things.

But even if your home is covered by your insurance while it's unoccupied, there are all kinds of little mistakes you can make that might invalidate your cover. If you accidentally leave a window open or a door unlocked, for example, and a thief of vandal gets in, it's unlikely that your home insurance will cover any related damages or stolen property.

Some insurance providers might also have special terms written into the policy to maintain your cover when you leave the property unoccupied, like leaving the heating on during the winter. It might also be necessary to inform your home insurance provider if you intend to leave your home unoccupied for an extended period.

These are all things to look out for in your insurance documents to prevent any rejected claims if something happens to your home while you're away.

4. Locks and keys

It sounds fairly obvious, but make sure you do a sweep to ensure all doors and windows are closed and locked properly. Check the garage and shed as well, if you have them.

If you were to leave a door or window unsecured and were burgled, you may find your home insurance provider unwilling to pay out for a claim because you failed to take “reasonable care” of the property.

Also, once the doors and windows are locked, make sure the keys are completely out of sight and reach of any doors, windows, or your letterbox. There’s no point locking a door if you’re putting the key within easy reach of an intruder. It's also important to consider that vehicle theft has increased a lot in recent years, so it's not just your house keys that you have to worry about keeping out of reach.

Finally, leave a spare set of keys with a friend, relative or trusted neighbour so that someone can gain entry to the property if something was to go wrong while you're away.

5. Don’t broadcast your absence

Many of us like to brag about where we’re jetting off to on social media and post holiday pictures and updates online while we're away, but this could be a big mistake.

In the excitement of your trip, it’s all too easy to publicise that your home is empty. But it’s best to avoid posting your trip on social media accounts, where it may be viewed by strangers, until you get back.

With that in mind, it's also not a great idea to post too many pictures of your home online in general, especially to a public social media account.

Thieves have been known to use pictures and details from social media to collect all sorts of information about their next targets. They can identify your address, the layout of your home, items of value, and even points of entry to make a break-in easy to plan.