I had a few minutes to spare so decided to Google “leaving house empty while on holiday” and I was astounded at the number of hits. As you can see it turned up 85 million articles so I feel sure this is an important topic.
I naturally did not read them all.
I looked through a selection from the first page of Google hits and found a common theme.
The Good Housekeeping website nicely surmised the problem:
Over 80% of burglaries occur when a house is empty, so try to make your house look occupied when you’re out and when you’re away on holiday.
I knew the amount of burglaries was high but over 80% surprised even me.
I then looked at the statistics
UK Statistics
In the UK The Office for National Statistics figures on recorded crime show that there were 392,341 burglaries in 2014-15, while Home Office data shows only 54,466 arrests were made for burglary.
Remember 80% take place while homes are unoccupied. If a house is burgled looking at the official statistics there is a 1 in 14 chance the person will even be arrested.
So the chance of recovering your lost property is very low indeed.
USA Statistics
Here it is even worse according to the FBI there were an estimated 8,277,829 property crimes reported by law enforcement. Financial losses suffered by victims of these crimes were calculated at approximately $14.3 billion.
Just looking at those figures is enough to give anyone pause for thought.
The various sites then suggest all the normal things such as arranging for your mail to be diverted, putting your lights on a time switch, not telling people on social media that you are away, etc.
But the best advice came from Home & Garden who said.
The best way to make sure your house is safe while you’re gone is to have someone you trust still living in it. You may be lucky enough to have a tidy and conscientious relative who’ll move in temporarily and water the plants, feed the pets and pick up the newspapers. If not, there are services you can use for house-sitting and pet-sitting while you’re away. This can be a pricey option, but it’s a solution that touches all the bases.
But we can offer you something even better!
Our service to Home Owners all over the world is FREE. Note Home and Garden said this is the pricey option but still the best.
Well we have removed the cost. You pay nothing to register, you pay nothing for a sitter. It is free!
Your risk of burglary drops by 80%
Your pets are looked after in their own home environment.
Your pot plants are watered.
And you end up blessing another family.
To find out more why not visit our website. CLICK HERE
If you have any other questions that are not answered on the website please use the contact page and I will do my best to answer you promptly.
God bless you,
Ray
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TLC Children’s Trust
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