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Press Release
September 1, 2000
CONTACT:
David Oliver, Lowe's Home Safety Council
336.658.5495
david.j.oliver@lowes.com
CHECK UP HOME SECURITY BEFORE YOU CHECK OUT
Time Away from Home Shouldn't Leave the Door Open to Crime
WILKESBORO, N.C. - Somewhere in the United States, a burglary occurs every 13 seconds. With the strong economy allowing
families to enjoy more vacations every year, they are also opening their doors to more home break-ins. One out of 10
homes will be burglarized this year - five million homes in all.
Because 90 percent of these crimes are preventable, Lowe's Home Safety Council suggests that before you head out for that
last summer getaway, take some basic home security measures.
"Many people get so wrapped up in getting away for vacation, they forget about securing their home before they leave,"
said David Oliver, executive director of Lowe's Home Safety Council. "In our recently-released survey, The State Of Home
Safety In America, we asked 1,000 parents what home safety issues were important to them. We found that 82 percent wanted
more information on how to prevent home break-ins."
According to the Lowe's Home Safety Council, homeowners can greatly reduce the risk of being burglarized by taking simple
steps while spending a small amount of money.
Lock Up
Did you know that in almost half of all residential burglaries, thieves simply breezed in through unlocked doors or
crawled through unlocked windows?
- Make sure every external door has a sturdy, well-installed dead bolt lock. Key-in-the-knob locks alone are not secure.
- Secure sliding glass doors by installing locks or placing a broomstick or dowel in the inside track to jam the door. To prevent the door from being lifted off the track, drill a hole through the slide door frame and the fixed frame. Then insert a pin in the hole.
- "Pin" double-hung windows by drilling a small hole at a 45-degree angle between the inner and outer frames, and then insert a nail that can be easily removed in the event of a fire.
Who's at the Door?
- Install a peephole or wide-angle viewer in all entry doors so you know who is at the door before opening it.
- All outside doors should be metal or solid wood. A good lock on a weak door defeats any effort to improve your locking system.
- If your doors don't fit tightly in their frames, install weather stripping around them.
Keeping Intruders Out
Look at your house from the outside and think about how you would break in.
- Burglars avoid bright lights. Install outside lights and keep them on at night, or install motion detector lights that only turn on if a sensor detects movement after dark.
- Keep your yard clean. Prune back shrubbery so it doesn't hide doors or windows. Cut back tree limbs that a thief could use to climb to an upper-level window.
- If you travel, purchase timers that will turn lights on and off in different areas of your house throughout the evening. A consistently dark house signals an empty house.
- Manage your mail. Call the post office to stop delivery while you are on vacation or have someone collect it.
While home crimes are down slightly, you should still do what you can to protect your home. In fact, some security
experts say the reason for this reduction in crime may be that Americans are more involved in home safety.
In 1993, Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse, the world's second largest home improvement retailer, founded Lowe's Home
Safety Council with the vision of creating safer American homes. Lowe's Great Safety Adventure and the Lowe's Heroes
programs are two marquis initiatives that carry out this vision. For additional home security, other home safety
information and free brochures, consumers can call 1-800-SAFE-HOME or visit
www.loweshomesafety.org.
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