Who’s afraid of the dark? Definitely not burglars, who prefer it for their work. Often, the advice given is to leave your porch lights on or lights in your home to dissuade them from targeting you.
The thing is, a cursory glance on the Internet will show that there’s no consensus on whether this is an effective means of protecting your home.
Leaving your lights on will have different results depending on what time they’re on, where you’re located and whether you combine them with other security measures.
Leave your lights on at night
At night, turning your lights on inside and outside is generally a good idea. You leave no dark corners for anyone to lurk in. You give would-be burglars the impression that someone is at home.
Authorities also recommend motion-sensing lights that turn on whenever someone passes by.
However, they discourage having lights on at night if you live in a sparsely populated area. This is likely to attract thieves who may miss your home otherwise.
Turn your lights off during the day
On the other hand, leaving your lights on during the day practically screams to burglars that you are not home.
Any burglar observing your home will assume that you are away from home for an extended period of time and act accordingly.
Use timers with your lights
In addition to leaving your lights on at night, experts suggest the use of timers. When you’re out, time the lights to go on and off in different rooms. That will mimic the movements of someone moving around the home.
Timers will also allow you to set your outside lights to stay off during the day and to go on at night.
Last word on leaving the lights on
Ultimately, according to a 2016 NPR report, leaving your lights on is going to work to your advantage when there are others around to notice a crime being committed at your home.
Even if the lights are on, burglars have been known to check if anyone is home by knocking and waiting to see if anyone answers the door.
Along with timers, experts recommend supplementing leaving your lights on with an alarm system and CCTV, while taking common sense security precautions.
Get more advice from us on what you can do to keep your home and your business safe.
Contact us at 1-305-984-9922.
