Having a house sitter while on Holiday

Going on holiday can be super exciting since it means taking a break from work and your regular routine, and just enjoying the change in scenery for a while.

However, as exciting as it may be, leaving your house empty for a week or two has an element of uncertainty and can keep you worried while away. You never know what can happen in your absence and surely don’t want to come home to any surprises.

Opportunistic burglars wait for when your house is empty and unprotected to break in, and what better time than when you are on a holiday?

Fortunately, there are several things you can do to prevent intrusions and break-ins while you are away enjoying your time, such as having a house sitter.

Having a house sitter can offer you peace of mind knowing that someone is watching over your home in your absence. It is also a great option if you are going away for an extended time and have pets who need to be looked after back home.

Read on to find out the importance of having a house sitter while on holiday, along with some of the best security measures you can take to protect your home while you’re away:

SHOULD YOU HAVE A HOUSE SITTER?

There are several benefits of having a house sitter, especially if you’re travelling or are away from home on holiday.

As mentioned earlier, burglars and intruders wait for your home to be empty so that they can easily break in without getting noticed, giving them the perfect opportunity when you are on holiday and your house is empty for several days.

Having a house sitter provides an element of safety since it looks like someone is living in your house. This deters criminals from breaking into your property since it never becomes obvious that the homeowners are away.

Along with deterring such security risks, a house sitter may also be able to contact you in case of an emergency, such as a pipe bursting, heavy rainfall, flooding, and more.

Not only that, but they may also perform routine tasks, such as picking up and sorting the mail, accepting deliveries on your behalf, light cleaning, and watering your plants.

No one likes coming back home to a pile of mail on the front door and dead plants after a nice and relaxing holiday. With a house sitter, it won’t even feel like you left your home since everything will be up-to-date, which is a plus point both in terms of convenience and safety.

In addition to that, if you have pets, you must know how expensive pet boarding facilities can be. A house sitter will take care of your pets so that they stay comfortable, loved, and well-fed. Not only will this save you lots of money but also be a more comfortable experience for your pets, as compared to a kennel or cattery.

The bottom line is that having a house sitter offers you peace of mind knowing that someone trustworthy is watching your house in your absence and can help you enjoy your holiday to the fullest.

HOW TO FIND A GOOD HOUSE SITTER?

Finding a good house sitter can be a challenging task since you wouldn’t want just anyone living in your home while you’re away.

You may ask a trusted friend or family member, or you could contact a professional company that offers house-sitting services. There are several agencies that offer the service and you can interview professional house sitters until you find someone you are comfortable with.

If you choose to opt for a professional service, make sure you choose an agency that fully vets their house sitters before trusting them to live in your house.

You may set some ground rules for the house sitter and may even write up an agreement detailing what they can and cannot do in your home while you’re away.

OTHER SECURITY MEASURES TO PROTECT YOUR HOUSE

It may be useful to have a house sitter while you’re away, but it may not be enough. Here are a few security measures that will most definitely help you secure your property and give you peace of mind knowing that your property is safe and secure:

HAVE SOMEONE KEEP AN EYE ON YOUR HOME

If you don’t want someone living in your house while you’re away, you can ask a trusted friend or family member to drop by on a regular basis to ensure everything is in order.

They must do so every few days and must be given access to your home to be able to go inside and check all the entrances, such as the front and back doors and windows.

You may ask them to pick up your mail if you haven’t paused the mail service, check the locks on the doors and windows, water your plants, mow the lawn, and maybe even stock up on some groceries before your arrival.

Your neighbours can also play a huge part in keeping your home secure and it pays off keeping a friendly relationship with them.

A close-knit neighbourhood is something that burglars usually stay away from, which is why giving your neighbours a heads up before heading out on holiday could be a great way of making sure someone is keeping an eye on your property.

If they know that the house is empty and they notice something unusual, they will stary more alert and notify you and the authorities immediately. Make sure to leave your contact number with them if they don’t already have it.

KEEP IT ON THE DOWN-LOW

Going on a holiday can be exciting and you might be tempted to tell everyone about your plans. While it is important to tell your work and close family and friends about your plans, it might not be the best idea to inform your hairdresser, the checkout guy at the supermarket, and everyone else you meet.

Also, as difficult as it may be in this day and age, you must refrain from posting your holiday plans on social media since it can be used by potential burglars as an open invitation, especially if your profiles are set to public.

Checking in at the airport may look cool on your Instagram stories, but it might be used against you since it tells people that your house will be empty for several days.

You may also want to make sure that your home address isn’t available on your social media, and any posts containing your personal information should be deleted.

This is a practice that must be followed all the time, not just when you are going away on holiday since this shouldn’t be public information for everyone to know and possibly misuse.

LOCK UP YOUR VALUABLES

You must keep your valuable possessions safely locked away since they are more vulnerable and what burglars may be after.

These items include cash, jewellery, watches, keys, expensive gadgets, and confidential documents such as passports, birth certificates, bank statements, credit cards, etc.

This way, even in the event of someone breaking into your property, they won’t be able to get their hands on your valuables since they’d be safely locked away from the wrong hands.

It is always best to invest in secure safes and hidden lock boxes before you leave for your holiday so that you can rest assured that your valuables will remain safe.

Simple actions such as not leaving valuable items near the doors or windows where passers-by may easily see them can deter burglars because they won’t be able to see anything worth stealing.

This includes items inside the house, garage, shed, garden, and any other place you feel may attract unwanted attention.

Keep everything securely locked away and use curtains or blinds to conceal the inside of your house from plain view since it may also make it more difficult for stalkers to tell if someone is home or not.

KEEP YOUR KEYS SAFE

While it may seem obvious to keep your house and car keys in a safe place, many homeowners fail to do so, giving burglars a chance to steal them, and that too very easily.

Keys are one of the most commonly stolen items in the country, which is why don’t be surprised if you see your house or car keys missing after a burglary.

Most people have the habit of placing their keys in common places such as under the doormat or a flowerpot, or near the main entrance of the house where they can easily grab them on their way out.

While these practices may be super convenient for the homeowners, they may also make it very easy for burglars to steal these keys and break into your property.

Burglars often use a popular technique known as “fishing” where they don’t even have to break into the house to steal the keys. They simple use a length of wire to hook the keys through the window or letterbox, which is made possible by leaving them in such easy to access places.

Therefore, when going on holiday, you must treat your keys as valuables, because they most certainly are, and put them in safe places such as a key safe or secure lockbox.

INVEST IN SMART LIGHTS

Darkness is a criminal’s ally since it provides them with a cover, allowing them to sneak into houses without getting noticed. This is why you must always keep your property well-illuminated and eliminate any blind spots that may be used by them to hide out.

While it may be pretty simple to turn on the light switch before nightfall when you’re at home, it can be an issue while you’re away.

Is there a way you can control your lights from a remote location? Yes, there is! Smart LED lights allow you to automate your lights and control them via an app from anywhere in the world.

Many smart bulbs also have a special mode for holidays that you can use as a burglary deterrent to automatically turn the lights on and off randomly to mimic the usual behaviour of someone living inside the house.

You may also invest in sensor lights that automatically turn on and alert you, or your neighbours in your absence if someone is approaching your property.

These lights are activated by motion and will automatically switch on when someone walks up to your door. They are also a useful deterrent for burglars and intruders who do not want to be in the spotlight when they are trying to pick your lock or break into your home.

INVEST IN A SMART LOCK

If you are not so sure about handing over your house keys to family members, friends, neighbours, or a house sitter, you may consider installing a smart lock that allows you to give temporary access to people.

You can set different codes for different people and allow them to access your home without worrying about keys and them getting lost or stolen.

What’s best about these locks is that you can cancel the codes and revoke access to your home in a quick second. You can cancel the codes as soon as you are back home so that they can’t be used anymore to gain access to your property.

Also, with smart locks, you not only control who enters your house but can also know when the system was used. They are integrated with your phone, tablet, and laptop via an app, and you can receive alerts every time someone uses the code to open the door to your property.

In addition to that, they also allow you to control and operate them remotely from a mobile device so that you can change the codes and grant and revoke access even from your holiday destination.

INVEST IN A SECURITY SYSTEM

Investing in a security system is one of the most effective home security measures and the best way to deter criminals, both while you are home and when you are away on holiday.

A home security system, which includes a visible burglar alarm and CCTV cameras, may not only deter criminals from targeting your home but also scare away those that attempt to do so.

Burglar alarms make use of sensors that pick up on intrusions and sound a loud alarm, sometimes also accompanied by flashing lights, to attract attention towards the intruders and scare them away.

CCTV (Closed-Circuit Television) cameras, on the other hand, not only deter criminals but also help gather video evidence in the form of CCTV footage if someone tries to target your property.

They are becoming a common sight with millions of homeowners around the world trusting them for constant surveillance of their properties.

They must be placed on all the at-risk locations, such as the main doors and windows, including the front, side, and back doors, the front and backyard, the garage, garden, shed, and garden office.

For maximum security and protection, you may opt for monitored burglar alarms and CCTV cameras that are connected to an Alarm Receiving Centre (ARC) manned by trained individuals who keep an eye on your property and respond to any alarm triggers.

They are a perfect solution for when you are on holiday and your house is empty since they can also dispatch the police in case of an attempted break-in.

Many homeowners also choose to invest in smart security systems that can be controlled via your mobile, tablet, or laptop and send you notifications on your phone every time the system picks up on something unusual.

In addition to break-ins, burglaries, and theft, you must also protect your home against fires since incidences of fire can happen even when the house is empty.

To reduce the risk of electrical fires on your property, make sure to switch off and unplug all electrical appliances, close all the internal doors to prevent the spread of fires, and most importantly, test your fire alarms and make sure that they are properly serviced and maintained.

CONSULT WITH A PROFESSIONAL SECURITY COMPANY

At Calder Security, we provide a comprehensive range of security solutions that help keep your home safe, even while you’re away on holiday.

We are experts in the field of home security and can recommend the best security solutions to make your home safe from all kinds of threats.

We are members of the Master Locksmith Association (MLA), approved members of the Security Systems and Alarms Inspection Board (SSAIB), and also conform to all the relevant British and EU Standards.

We follow all the best practices in the industry and install only high-quality, state-of-the-art security systems that include burglar alarms, CCTV systems, access control systems, security safes, and fire alarms.

Contact us here or call us on 0800 612 9799 to make your home safe from threats, both when you’re at home or away on holiday!

Photo by James Feaver on Unsplash