When to Step Up Your Home Security

Throughout the flurry of wedding preparations this spring, Texas Farm Bureau member Kody Merk and his bride, Ariel, crossed off one item on their to-do list with the help of close friends.

For their honeymoon, the couple chose to travel from their home in the small North Texas city of Sachse to the resort town of Gatlinburg at the edge of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Eastern Tennessee. This meant leaving behind an apartment filled with wedding presents — not to mention the rest of the couple’s worldly possessions.

“We knew pretty far in advance that we’d give our best friends keys to our place so they could trade off coming in and out,” Merk says. “We asked them to do things like take circulars off the door, bring in the mail, and leave lights on in different rooms so from the outside looking in, it seemed like someone was still there.”

That’s a savvy move, according to the FBI, which estimates that residential burglaries accounted for 74 percent of the estimated $4.5 billion in property losses in 2013, the most recent year that statistics are available.

Of course, burglaries aren’t the only issue travelers can encounter upon returning home after a journey.

“I live six miles out in the country, and it’s pretty safe, but we still have neighbors come into our house while we’re gone to make sure we don’t have any problems like a leak,” explains George Wages, a Texas Farm Bureau Insurance agency manager in Nacogdoches. “A leak in your refrigerator water dispenser can really mess up the wood floor in your kitchen. If your water heater blows out, it can cause all sorts of damage.”

During the summer swelter, standing water in the home can mildew and mold quickly, making cleaning up more involved and potentially more expensive. As a precaution, consider shutting off the water while you’re gone.

“Properly maintaining a home is one of the best ways to prevent water damage,” says Jeanne M. Salvatore, a consumer spokeswoman for the nonprofit Insurance Information Institute (III). She recommends preventive measures like installing and maintaining a backwater valve, which allows sewage to go out, but not come back in.

Ask your Texas Farm Bureau Insurance Agent for a 360 Review of your policies so you know what’s covered, and learn here how to protect your home while you’re away.

Coverage and discounts are subject to qualifications and policy terms and may vary by situation. © 2015 Texas Farm Bureau Insurance