Collie residents are being urged to be extra careful during the school holidays, with the RAC claiming there was an average 12 home burglaries per day across the state during last year’s holiday period.
“We definitely see a spike in home burglaries at this time of the year, with last year’s Christmas holiday claims averaging more than $2 million dollars worth of stolen items,” RAC Insurance Home Claims Manager Glen Walker said.
“Our advice to Western Australians is to always ensure your home doesn’t look vacant when you go away on holidays.
“Ask family and friends to housesit and water your plants, and ask neighbours to put out the rubbish bins and collect the mail. This all helps to make your home look occupied and maintained.
“Be aware that opportunistic thieves are on the look-out for easy targets, so ensure your exterior sensor lights are switched on and any high-value goods are not visible through windows.
“If possible, install a home alarm system and use the window stickers that come with it to warn potential thieves there is an alarm in place.
“The more you do to secure your home, the less likely it is to be targeted for both spontaneous and planned burglaries.”
