According to recent metrics, as many as 30% of UK households contain just one person. Around 8.4 million of us live on our own, which is a significant figure. Our locksmiths at Doncaster Lock & Key regularly attend properties with just one person living there. In many cases, we find the same potential failings in home security practices that, in theory, could put someone at risk. How can you avoid that issue?
While independent living can be great fun for most of us, it’s not always ideal for home security. If you have ever lived with someone else, you might be surprised at how much you rely on them to help keep the place safe. So, how can you make sure you stay suitably secure when living on your own? Here are some useful tips from our experts at Doncaster Lock & Key to help you improve your lot and stay safe.
The first step we recommend anyone living alone take is to have an emergency contact they can trust. It should be someone whom you trust implicitly, like a close friend or a family member.
If something happens to you where you need assistance, help needs to arrive quickly. This is doubly true if you have a medical issue or a physical limitation. Having emergency contacts stored in your phone or on your person, such as in your wallet, can be invaluable in an emergency.
In this digital age, storing that list of contacts on your phone makes the most sense. However, you should also have a physical list that is easily discoverable. That could be on your fridge, in your wallet, or somewhere that an emergency service provider – like a police officer or paramedic – can find.
Emergency contact details are very useful to have, so that if you do wind up in a perilous situation, help can be sought. However, this list of emergency contacts should also include your local hospital, police station, and fire department. You never know when you need to call!
As locksmiths, you would be shocked at how many break-ins we attend that were started because someone did not lock their doors or windows. If you give a criminal an inch, they’ll take a mile!
Make sure that you get into the habit of locking every window and door as soon as you get inside. Locked windows and doors take a couple of minutes to go through, but they provide meaningful security. Criminals are always looking for people who don’t lock their doors, so make sure you don’t give them any reason to see you as an easy target.
Get into the habit of locking doors as soon as you get into the house. When you are heading to bed, carry out a rundown check of every door and window in your home. It’s a good practice to get into and can be the difference between a criminal waltzing into your home and giving up because you haven't left them with any easy routes of entry.
Our next step would be to get in touch with a local locksmithing service (like us!) and chat about your home security system. A professional can give you an honest appraisal on how good – or bad – it is.
Home security systems come in packages today, and can include everything from smart doorbells and CCTV systems to motion sensors, fire alarms, carbon monoxide alarms, and more. They tend to be a great all-in-one package that a home security professional can install for you.
This is probably something that you need to weigh up on your own in terms of budget and the features you need. At the very least, getting a mixture of internal home security alarm systems and perimeter security should be a good starting point. The more you can do to ward off potential intruders the less likely you are to run into a potential problem, especially seen as you are living alone.
Do not stop at just making your home more secure – think about your garden and garage spaces, if you have one. If a criminal cannot get through your front door, rest assured, they’ll try the back. And if they cannot get in the back, they’ll try to see what they can pilfer from your garden or garage!
Get high-security locks fitted to your garage and make sure that your perimeter entrances, such as your gate, are also highly secured. If you have a fence, make sure it is double-slatted to limit visibility into your garden. Keep all sheds and garages well-secured with high-security locks and padlocks. Simple steps like this make sure your entire property – not just the interior – remains secure.
Another feature we highly recommend to any homeowner living on their own is to get motion detection – having lights that come on as soon as they detect movement is a surprisingly effective security tool!
Motion-operated lighting is a great way to help literally shine a light on any criminals trying to get into your building. Most of them will be scared off by the fact that their presence has turned on the lighting. If you get motion sensors and detectors working in tandem with the lighting, you can get a notification on your smartphone and then chase the criminal off. Most of the time, it scares thieves off on their own.
Motion-detection lighting is also a great investment indoors. It means you aren’t messing around in the dark trying to find your way around the place, or even to locate the light switch. Coming home from a night out after a few beers? This makes sure you avoid staggering around trying to find the on switch for your lights.
At the start of every season – spring, summer, autumn, winter – make sure you check your locks. The weather can create havoc with our locks, leading to doors jamming or locks breaking entirely.
Check that each door opens and closes smoothly and that the locks connect properly. If you run into any problems where you feel like your locks are not operating as they should, get a local locksmith involved. Have them check the quality of your locks and provide insight into upgrades you should consider.
If your locks have any obvious problems, get them replaced ASAP – do not ignore a clear sign that your locks are not working or are on the verge of breaking or failing. Don’t wait until disaster strikes to take action. We’ve seen one too many avoidable break-ins not to recommend this essential step!
You might have locks that are marked as British Standard or high-security. Great, but that’s only the first step!
We recommend installing additional security, such as night latches and burglar bars. These extra locks – even a morticed door chain – can be a great way to help keep doors secure.
Even if a burglar works out how to cut through your main locks, these secondary layers of security help keep them on the outside, looking in, rather than profiting by stealing your hard-earned belongings. Extra security, like a chain or bar, can make your locks feel that little bit more secure.
While many of us buy items like a Ring doorbell for convenience, they are also invaluable security features. That’s why we recommend you buy a video doorbell or, at the very least, a peephole!
If you are living on your own, opening the door when you get an unexpected chap is not easy. So, invest in a security system like a video doorbell or a peephole so you can pre-screen who is at your door. This lets you see who is waiting for you, and whether you know them or can trust them. That stops you from taking the risk of opening the door to someone who could be dangerous or risky.
If nothing else, visitor security makes it easy to arrange parcel deliveries if you are not at home. They also act as a useful deterrent to criminals, especially if paired with other security features we’ve mentioned in this guide.
OK, so now your doors feel well-secured and carefully watched over by security systems. What about your windows? Your windows are an easy point of entry if they are left unguarded.
Fitting window bars can make your home feel like a jail, but many of these bar systems can be fitted temporarily or enabled/disabled before you go to sleep. At the very least, make sure your windows have extra security with high-quality, well-maintained locks.
If someone can just pop your windows open with a push, you need something more. Get better locks fitted by a locksmith. Also, think about adding features like window bars that prevent the window from opening too far; that stops someone from climbing through the gap.
First-floor windows, especially, should be better protected. It might even be worth investing in extra-resistant glass so that, if someone tries to enter the ‘old-fashioned way’, they will not be able to muster the strength required to smash the window and climb inside.
The last thing you want as an individual living alone is to stick out like a sore thumb. We highly recommend that you consider making your home as ‘unremarkable’ as possible – at least from the outside. Start by making sure any expensive equipment – inside and out – is not sitting on display.
For example, you might have a fancy bike – keep it in a shed or stored out of sight from your garden. You may have a fancy 4K+ television and a games console setup, but make sure it’s not visible at your windows. You’d be shocked at how many break-ins start because the high-value stuff was on clear display.
We also cannot recommend enough that you do not leave keys or access credentials on display. Keys should not be kept anywhere near your front or back door; it might be convenient, but lock fishing is a commonly used break-in method. If someone can fish through a letterbox or punch in a glass pane to get to your keys, they can get inside nice and quick.
So, conceal as many of your valuables as you can. Keep them out of sight, out of mind, and you are less likely to be seen as a potential target for criminal entry.
Look, not all of us want to be best mates with the neighbours. Trust us, we’ve been to enough callouts due to neighbour-on-neighbour lock damage to know that not everyone wants to be pals with next door!
However, it’s always useful to have some form of cordial relationship with your neighbours. For one, you can look out for each other when it comes to securing the street and protecting your properties. You can all work together on things like home perimeter security. It also helps to have a point of contact to talk to about local goings-on, including any spikes in spates, break-ins, or similar issues.
It also means that, if you get on with your neighbours, they are more likely to react to suspicious activity – especially if you are at work, out of the house, on holiday, etc.
If your neighbours don’t get on with you, they are less likely to take action or call the police if they spot something untoward. Again, you don’t all need to attend each other's weddings, but you should have a strong enough relationship that you can look out for one another when it matters most.
With the above tips, you should have a pretty good handle on making your home more secure. These features should all work in tandem with good security habits to ensure your home is far less of a potential risk. The more you can do to scare off potential intruders, the better!
In the last year alone, more than 212,000 reported burglaries occurred. That’s a dizzying figure, and not one that you should ignore. By applying the above tips, you can ensure you feel safer living on your own and significantly reduce the risk of a successful break-in. Stay safe, stay secure, and enjoy all the benefits of living independently without the risks!
