These continue unabated and there seems to be an increase in the number of break-ins to houses along with violent intrusions into homes.
Companies that store cash, or are perceived to store cash, are still the favourite targets and the intruders have developed sophisticated safe breaking techniques. Likewise, people who store cash at home have been targeted with concerning levels of violence. Never forget that in most cases inside information is a factor, staff at work or home are fully aware of your habits and this information leaks very easily.
We strive to continually improve our services and are updating procedures and equipment as we go along, just a few reminders:
- Please make sure that that we have your updated and current key holder information, if there have been any changes please advise us. Two contactable key holders per premises please.
- Key holders should be contactable; phones should not be turned off or ignored during the night as this is most probably when we will need to contact them.
- Your key holders need to know what to do if they are phoned by our control room, please have a clear policy so that everyone knows what is expected of them and that they have the wherewithal to do what is required. For example, there is no point having a key holder who resides 20 kilometers from your premises and has no means of transport.
- Panic Alarms are for emergency situations only, please do not use them to advise us of, or request assistance for, non-emergency events as this detracts us from responding to genuine cases. Unfortunately, there will be an additional charge in instances where we are summoned by panic alarm to a non-emergency event.
It is important that you satisfy yourselves that your alarm is working and that you are getting the best out of the system:
- Phone our control room and test your alarm on occasion, if you are going away do this at least a week before you leave to give us time to attend to any problems that may become evident.
- Use your alarm – too often, after an incident has occurred, we are finding that the alarm was not armed.
- Remember not to obscure alarm sensors by stacking goods in front of them, covering them with curtains, ignoring them during renovations and so on – when this happens the alarm does not work even if it is armed.
- If you are away, arrange with a friend or neighbor to check your premises – just make sure they don’t activate the alarm!
- Don’t leave any valuables in the yard or unlocked out buildings, rather store valuable bikes and so on inside the house.
- If possible, lock generators away in garages or storerooms.
Sadly, these are still happening on a regular basis and some of them end up being of a very violent nature, do everything you possibly can to avoid becoming a victim:
- Keep your external doors closed and locked when you are at home – if you have grill gates on these doors, use them.
- Keep your gate locked all the time.
- Don’t go outside at night, regardless of the reason.
- At night, leave external lights on, at least until you go to bed.
- Don’t relax in front of an open window whilst watching TV – rather close it and draw the curtains so that you can’t be surprised.
- Do not let anyone who is not known to you into your yard or house, no matter how plausible or desperate their story.
- Be on the lookout for bogus repairmen and conmen; also warn children and domestic staff about this so that they do not let anyone in “to fix the stove” or “collect the TV” while you are at work.
- When driving home and arriving at your gate, be alert to anyone following you or hanging around the gate.
- Avoid opportunist theft by not leaving valuables visible in your yard; rather put them away of try to hide them from view.
- If you have a safe at home, don’t flaunt it – install it at night when no-one else is there, hide it where possible, don’t open or close it whilst staff are around, don’t leave the keys in your bedside drawer and don’t advertise what you keep in it. Remember – inside information!
This is becoming a very prevalent problem, in one recent case CCTV footage showed the perpetrators arrive in a car park shortly after their victim, drive straight to the target car, force the door open and steal laptops and cellphones – the victim had obviously been watched, targeted and followed from whence he came. It takes a matter of seconds to break into a car so don’t invite this by leaving laptops, cellphones, bags and so on visible in the vehicle.
This, along with the potholes slowing us down, sets us up for the smash and grab – again, when travelling don’t have anything valuable visible in the car, they will smash your window and snatch it before you realize what is happening. Put things away in the boot before you travel and keep your car doors locked during the journey, no matter how short. Beware of fake “minor bumps” being used to get you out of your car in these congested situations.
Since 1959 Fawcett Security has proudly been the leading security company in the Zimbabwean Security Industry. Providing the highest possible standards of service delivery, training & manpower development.
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