The holidays are supposed to be a time of great joy and excitement where you get to spend every free moment enjoying cookies and treats with loved ones. However, life does continue to go on even outside of your holiday-related bubble. It also remains your responsibility to protect all of your belongings outside of your bubble — like your condo. When it comes to making sure that you are doing your best to protect your home, even if you’re not there, here are some tips to keep in mind.
Be cautious with Christmas decorations
Christmas is a lot of fun and a lot of that has to do with how you decorate. However, a lot of Christmas decorations can be fire hazards. Even LED lights can overheat when tucked into the depths of your Christmas tree or strung along over the fireplace. Be aware of your decorations and never leave them unattended.
Check your fire alarms and fire hazards
Speaking of fire hazards, make sure that you check your home for functionality of your alarms. The holiday season is a great time to change your alarms, as it’s always the same time each year. Also take this time to check out any fireplaces or chimneys to keep them clean and safe from any potential fire hazards. This is a great thing to plan to do before the "winter" season.
Plus, having plenty of fire alarms may alert you should your neighbor have a fire since you may share a wall with that neighbor, especially in cases of condo living.
Safety for your home when you travel
If you do decide to travel for the holidays, it’s important to protect your home while you’re gone. First, try to keep your travel plans to yourself. At the very least, keep them offline where prowlers may be watching. Before leaving, unplug everything (to prevent power surge-related fires) and tuck your valuables away where potential robbers won’t be able to see them quickly.
You’ll also want to put your lights on timers so that they will give the sense that someone is home and ward away any unexpected visitors. Along this same line of thought, you can also ask a neighbor to pick up mail and packages so that it looks as though someone is home. With the holiday season, the increased foot traffic, especially in apartment and condo complexes, means that wrong-doers can be hovering nearby and watching to see which units are unattended.
Protect your condo with insurance
Use the holiday season as a reminder to get (or go over) your condo insurance plan. This will give you peace of mind knowing that your personal belongings are protected in case of a fire, theft or other damage. This is also good for when you are hosting parties to protect against liabilities.
Don’t forget your car
No matter where your car is, make sure that you protect it. Keep the windows up and the car locked when you are not in it, regardless of how "good" you think your neighborhood is. If your car isn't already equipped with a car alarm of some sort, consider getting one installed to deter car theft. With more people around the condo community, more people may be lurking around unnoticed and eyeing your car.
Keep your holidays fun and light-hearted by protecting your home, car and belongings from trouble. Just another thing to be thankful for when going around the holiday table this season.
Contact Harbour Insurance Services at (281) 520-4090 for a free quote for condo insurance for your League City condo or with any questions you may have about any of your personal insurance needs.