Leaving a pile of dirty dishes in the kitchen, allowing neighbours to park on the driveway and hanging a load of washing on the line in the garden are amongst the most common home security hacks adopted by Brits.
In a detailed study of 2,000 homeowners by Yale, it also emerged that the more creative holidaymakers among us go as far as setting timers which play dog-barking sounds at specific times when the house is empty.
Other tactics include leaving lights on timers, hiding smaller, easy-to-steal items such as jewellery, installing heavy duty window locks and cutting the grass so it doesn't look uncared for.
Meanwhile, the most bizarre burglar-proof measure was asking the milkman to have pretend conversations with the homeowner on the doorstep.
The study found 63 per cent of Brits actively try to dissuade burglars from entering their property when away. While nine in 10 make every effort possible to ensure their home is safe and secure, two thirds admit they do worry about the safety of their property when they're not at home.
Of the 2,000 polled, one in 10 had been burgled while away from home – the most common stolen items included jewellery, televisions and laptops.
'When you're away from your home enjoying your holiday, there's nothing worse than worrying about whether it's secure,' said a spokesperson for Yale. 'Burglars tend to target homes that look vacant and appear to have a lack of home security in place, so a simple and easy way to protect your home is to use visual deterrents.
'These include installing a high-quality alarm or CCTV system, and making sure your locks are Kitemarked to a suitable standard to protect your home. Another big concern for holiday makers is the niggling feeling of whether you've locked your front door whilst you're away. The introduction of smart door locks means that you can check this remotely using an app.
'There's also the opportunity to send friends, family or neighbours a temporary pin code or mobile key, granting them short-term access to your property while you're away so they can check everything is just as you left it.'
Top 30 burglar-proof measures
1. Leave lights on a timer
2. Make sure keys are away from the front door and aren't labelled
3. Ask the neighbours to put the bins out
4. Adding window locks to your windows
5. Getting someone to pop in the take the post away from the letterbox / door mat
6. Getting a friend/family member to pop round and open and close the blinds at various intervals
7. Leave a hall light on
8. Hide smaller, easy to carry, items such as jewellery and vinyl
9. Cut the grass before you leave so that it doesn't look like a meadow by the time you get back
10. Hide any paperwork with name and address on
11. Close all the curtains downstairs so no-one can see in
12. Leaving all curtains open so it looks like someone is home
13. Have someone feed your cat / dog so they are a presence in the house
14. Getting a neighbour to park on the drive
15. Cancel all newspapers
16. Leave some dirty dishes on the side so it looks like the kitchen is being used
17. Even if you're not travelling abroad, you take passports and driving license away with you
18. Inform the local Neighbourhood Watch Scheme that you're going on holiday
19. Improve natural surveillance at the front of your property i.e. trim high hedges
20. Leave some music on in the background
21. Hide valuable items and swapping them for rubbish versions e.g. hiding the good TV and leaving something old in its place
22. Use the Royal Mail's Keepsafe service (holds letters and parcels for up to 66 days while you are away and delivers them once you return)
23. Hide the family calendar so people from outside can't see when you're away
24. Getting a neighbour to switch the TV off and on
25. Give valuables to a neighbour rather than hiding it in the back of the wardrobe
26. Post things on social media that would suggest you are at home
27. Leave a load of washing out on the line in the back garden
28. Get a dog barking sound to play on repeat by the door
29. Have automated curtains fitted that go up and down at night and the mornings
30. Ask the milkman to have pretend conversations with you
Final piece of advice – be very careful when posting to social media
'It's important to remember when you finally arrive at your holiday destination, to resist the urge to 'check in' on social media as this can be very risky,' said the Yale spokesperson. 'The modern-day burglar is very shrewd and will more than likely be stalking social media accounts to see who's away, and checking in online could mean you're their first target.
'We advise checking your security settings before posting or simply waiting until you get home to post those holiday snaps.'
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Olivia Heath is the Daily Editor at House Beautiful. Heading up all things digital, Olivia loves nothing more than uncovering tomorrow's biggest design trends and revealing the best tips and tricks to help you decorate your home like an interior designer. Week by week Olivia shares the most stylish high street buys to help you get the look for less (while compiling her very own, and rather lengthy, homeware lust list) and showcases the best makeovers (who doesn't love a before & after?), as well as the hottest and most unique properties on the market.
Prior to making the switch to interiors on House Beautiful, Olivia worked at Reveal magazine, where she reported on celebrity and entertainment news by day, and attended showbiz parties and red carpet events by night! Olivia has an MA in Journalism with an NCTJ qualification, as well as a BA in Journalism and Media & Cultural Studies.
