The concept of home safety involves knowing the risks and potential dangers in and around your house. It also includes education meant to keep your family and goods safe from burglaries.
Sadly, burglar scams seem to be more and more common in recent years. They are also known as door-to-door scams, but with proper education, almost anyone can avoid having their valuable goods stolen.
Read on to learn what are the most common scenarios and aspects you should watch out for if you want to avoid any potential burglar scams.
The ‘Knocker’ Scam
This one even made it to the news, last year. A wave of break-ins all across the UK, has determined the authorities to issue a warning.
The mechanism was quite intelligent, really. Conmen were posing as door-to-door sellers offering a range of cleaning products. As you may imagine, their purpose is to scout and check the house.
They would look for valuable possessions, if the house is empty during certain hours or if there are any security systems installed.
All this information was reported to other gang members who would raid the house sometime in the following weeks.
To stay away from these burglar scams, you should secure your front door with a door chain or simply refuse to open the door to the sellers or invite them in.
Fake Utility Workers
This scam involves two burglars. They would pose as utility workers telling you there’s an emergency they need to fix right away.
While one of them keeps you busy, the other goes around your house and steals whatever valuable possessions or money he can find.
The idea something may be wrong with one of your utilities is what makes this one of the most efficient burglar scams. To make things worse, if you refuse to let them in, they will threaten you with a fine.
Luckily, there is a simple method to avoid this scam: if the so-called utility workers haven’t reached out to you to schedule a check-up or maintenance fix, simply refuse. They don’t have the authority to fine you. Additionally, just threaten them you’ll call the Police and watch them leave in no time.
Burglar Scams which Use Fake Authority to Fool You
Another common situation is when someone posing as a census surveyor, shows up at your front door and starts asking detailed questions, such as:
- Financial status
- Your National Insurance number
- Where do you work
- If you have children or not.
This scam works because the con artist uses the fact we tend to trust people who are seen as an “official” or “expert.”
If it happens to you, the first thing you should do is ask for a badge number and paperwork which states they are who they claim to be.
In Conclusion
As you have read, burglar scams can be easily avoided. If you want to take it up a notch and secure your home with all-around smart security systems, you can do so. You’ll get more benefits than you expect and extra peace of mind.
Being informed is the first step towards keeping your home and family safe.
However, whenever one of the situations above happens, remember to always notice your local authorities. Any information you provide could help prevent something similar happening to anyone else.
At LockRite we took a keen interest in almost all aspects of home security. If you’re locked out, lost your keys or you’re finding it hard to lock your door, just get in touch with one of our professional locksmiths.