Housebreaking in Scotland

• Use UV or indelible pens, postcode etching or chemically coded systems to mark your property & make it difficult for thieves to sell it on.
• Register your valuables for free on the Immobilise website: www.immobilise.com. If they’re stolen, it will allow you to tell the police & your insurer.
• Protect your bike by joining BikeRegister, the UK’s national bicycle marking and registration scheme, which makes your bike a harder target for thieves and could help to reunite you with it in the event it is stolen.
• Photograph highly valuable items such as jewellery, paintings & antiques. Keep the pictures in a safe place, outside your home.

Criminals watch out for houses they think are empty and unprotected. Make their lives harder by doing the following.

• If you can, fit alarms with flashing lights and sounders at the front & back of your property.
• Switch lights or a radio on when you go out. You can buy timer devices to do this automatically.
• Even if you’re only going out for a few minutes, check that all doors and windows are properly closed and locked.
• Make sure side and back gates are secure.
• Don’t leave garden tools outside, keep ladders out of sight  - and ensure sheds, garages and outbuildings are locked.
• Fit tamper-proof automatic outside security lights.
• Even when you’re at home, try not to leave accessible windows open at night.
• If you’re going away on holiday, ask a neighbour to keep an eye on your home, take in any milk and newspaper deliveries, and maybe park on your drive.
• Christmas is a key time for these crimes, with many houses full of new and valuable presents. Don’t alert anyone by leaving present packaging outside – put it all in your recycling box, out of sight.
• Don’t let yourself become a victim of a distraction crime, where more than one person calls at your door, trying to dupe you into letting one caller in to steal your possessions you whilst you are distracted by another one.