Home Security Checklist for Holiday Absences

There is a particular kind of thrill in locking the front door on the way to the airport, knowing the suitcases are packed and the out-of-office is on. But for UK families, leaving a home empty for a week or two is also when many insurance policies quietly become less generous. A little preparation before you travel protects both your property and your cover.

Start With Your Insurance Policy, Not Your Suitcase

Most home insurance policies include an unoccupied property condition. Typically, your cover is unaffected for the first 30 days a home is left empty, after which certain types of protection — escape of water, theft, vandalism, sometimes accidental damage — can be restricted or removed. A few insurers use 45 or even 60 days, so it is worth checking the wording before a long trip or an extended stay with relatives.

Where the condition bites, the usual response is straightforward: tell your insurer, who may agree to extend cover, sometimes for a small extra premium. If you leave without telling them and a pipe bursts on day 35, you could find a claim refused.

Two related points worth checking:

• Accidental damage cover often carries its own conditions, so read the section rather than relying on memory.
• Joint policies and lodgers can complicate a claim if someone is staying in the property but is not named on the policy. A housesitter is not automatically covered.

Make the House Look Occupied

Burglars rarely pick properties at random. They look for the signals that say nobody is home. Defeating those signals costs very little.

• Use plug-in timers on two or three lamps in different rooms, staggered so they come on at slightly different times.
• Leave a radio on a talk station at low volume, or set a smart speaker to play a news bulletin in the morning.
• Do not close every curtain. Leaving the usual ones open in the day and drawing them at night looks far more natural than a fully shuttered house for a fortnight.
• Pause deliveries — milk, veg boxes, newspapers, and any regular subscription box.
• Ask a neighbour to put your wheelie bins out and bring them in again, and to park on your drive if you normally leave a car there.

If you have a burglar alarm, check it is in working order and that the monitoring contract, if you have one, is still active. A key safe with a code is useful for traders and carers, but change the code before you travel if it has been shared widely.

Ask a Neighbour — and Make It Easy for Them

A good neighbour is worth more than any gadget. Ask one or two people you trust to walk past, and be specific about what you need rather than vague. Most people are happy to help when the request is small and clear.

• Give them a key, or leave one with a trusted family member, and tell them the alarm code.
• Ask them to push post flat against the inside of the letterbox rather than leaving it piled on the mat, and to move any parcels left on the step out of sight.
• Leave your mobile number and the dates you return, plus a contact for a plumber or electrician in an emergency.
• Ask them to pop in once or twice, run a tap, and check for any sign of leaks under the sink or around the boiler.

Water is one of the most common causes of serious claims, and a slow leak noticed on day three is a very different matter to one discovered on day twenty. If your stopcock is accessible, consider turning the water off at the mains and draining the system, especially in winter. Leave the heating on a low frost setting rather than off completely.

Keep Your Absence Off Social Media

It is tempting to post the airport selfie, but a public countdown to your return is exactly the information a burglar wants. Post the holiday photos when you are home, or at least keep your profile private and avoid tagging your location. The same applies to out-of-office replies — set them to say you are away from your desk rather than specifying the dates you are abroad, and never mention the empty house.

If you use a smart doorbell or camera, check the app works remotely so you can see activity while you are away, and that it will record rather than just notify. Cloud footage can be invaluable if something does happen.

The Day Before You Go

• Lock every window, including small ones in bathrooms and utility rooms, and check the loft hatch.
• Put valuables, spare keys and documents out of sight — or better, in a safe or with a trusted relative.
• Take a quick dated photo or video of each room. It takes five minutes and settles arguments about what was there afterwards.
• Unplug non-essential appliances, but leave the fridge and freezer running.
• Tell your insurer if you are away longer than the unoccupied period, and keep a note of who has keys and when they visited.

Do these things and you can board the plane knowing the house is quietly ticking over — and that your cover, if you ever need it, is still standing behind you.