We have just switched our clocks to winter time, signalling longer dark evenings. Crime traditionally picks up in winter and now is the time to secure your property.
Lock the main access gates to your property this winter.
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According to An Garda Síochána, the number of burglaries increases by 23% in winter, with the afternoon period around school runs a prime target. Here are essential tips to keep thieves away from your home and farm in the coming months.
Lock up and light up: this is the title of the current garda prevention campaign. Nearly one in five burglars enter a property through an unsecured window or door. Never leave them unlocked, keep your intruder alarm in good working order and always switch it on.
Turn on some lights, including when you are away. Use timer switches in your home if you are out for long periods. Install motion sensor lights on the farm.
Locking up is good only if intruders cannot easily access your keys. Don't hide keys anywhere on your property: all family and staff members should have their own. Never leave keys near a window or a door. Gardaí recorded 160 cases of burglars fishing keys through letterboxes in the past year. According to IFA crime prevention executive Colin Connolly, best practice is to keep keys to machinery, gates, etc. in a safe key box, which itself is locked.
Padlock the main access gates that could be used to bring a vehicle to your yard or take your livestock away, and fit them with hinge caps. If some gates connect your yard to the road through a field, consider locking them as well.
Take a tour of your property imagining that you have forgotten your keys. How would you get in? Are there weak windows or doors, ladders or lean-tos that could be used to gain entry? Conduct a self-assessment of risks on your farm with the IFA's online interactive security check-up.
At night, park heavier machinery in a way that blocks access to lighter items such as quads.
Join a local text alert group.
Keep fences in good order and trim hedges and trees so that access points to your property are visible to neighbours and passers-by: this will deter criminals and increase your chances that the alarm will be raised in case of suspicious activity. Consider CCTV if valuable property is stored hidden from view of your home.
Mark your tools and machinery. At the minimum, use your own colours and engravings and photograph them. For valuable items, consider professional marking and registration through Theftstop.
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Title: 10-step burglary check for winter darkness
We have just switched our clocks to winter time, signalling longer dark evenings. Crime traditionally picks up in winter and now is the time to secure your property.
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According to An Garda Síochána, the number of burglaries increases by 23% in winter, with the afternoon period around school runs a prime target. Here are essential tips to keep thieves away from your home and farm in the coming months.
Lock up and light up: this is the title of the current garda prevention campaign. Nearly one in five burglars enter a property through an unsecured window or door. Never leave them unlocked, keep your intruder alarm in good working order and always switch it on.
Turn on some lights, including when you are away. Use timer switches in your home if you are out for long periods. Install motion sensor lights on the farm.
Locking up is good only if intruders cannot easily access your keys. Don't hide keys anywhere on your property: all family and staff members should have their own. Never leave keys near a window or a door. Gardaí recorded 160 cases of burglars fishing keys through letterboxes in the past year. According to IFA crime prevention executive Colin Connolly, best practice is to keep keys to machinery, gates, etc. in a safe key box, which itself is locked.
Padlock the main access gates that could be used to bring a vehicle to your yard or take your livestock away, and fit them with hinge caps. If some gates connect your yard to the road through a field, consider locking them as well.
Take a tour of your property imagining that you have forgotten your keys. How would you get in? Are there weak windows or doors, ladders or lean-tos that could be used to gain entry? Conduct a self-assessment of risks on your farm with the IFA's online interactive security check-up.
At night, park heavier machinery in a way that blocks access to lighter items such as quads.
Join a local text alert group.
Keep fences in good order and trim hedges and trees so that access points to your property are visible to neighbours and passers-by: this will deter criminals and increase your chances that the alarm will be raised in case of suspicious activity. Consider CCTV if valuable property is stored hidden from view of your home.
Mark your tools and machinery. At the minimum, use your own colours and engravings and photograph them. For valuable items, consider professional marking and registration through Theftstop.
If you would like to speak to a member of our team, please call us on 01-4199525.
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