A Lifestyle Safety Checklist for Crime Prevention

The following is a checklist to help you gauge how well you have eliminated the likelihood of being a victim of crime from your daily life during your work or leisure time.

Around the House

• Do you keep a list of emergency phone numbers next to your home phone?
• Do you lock all your outside doors at all times even when you are within your house?
• Does everybody in your house know they should ask for a picture ID before opening the door?
• Do you make it a point to check the references of people who work in and outside your house?
• Do you know where the local police stations are in your city?
• Do you notify authorities when you will be absent from your house for an extended period of time?
• Are you around when workers or repairmen enter your home?

Among Your Neighbors

• Do your children know how to call 911 and get help from neighbors during an emergency?
• Do you talk with your neighbors at least two times per month?
• Do you have a buddy system established with one of your neighbors for keeping a watchful eye on your property? Have you instructed him to collect your mail and newspapers when you are not around?
• Do you keep a key with a neighbor you can trust rather than having one stashed under a rock outside your house?
• Do you partake in a Neighborhood Watch program?

Daily Personal Routine

• Do you on occasion carry more than $250 in cash?
• Do you practice boxing or any form of self defense?
• Do you keep personal safety on your mind regularly?
• Do you practice safety when operating power tools and other hazardous equipment?
• Is your personal history void of any accidents or injuries?
• Do you vary your daily activities every day?
• Do you carry a cell phone?
• Do you use ATM’s during the daytime or in well-secured public areas?
• Do you travel with other people on a regular basis or check in with somebody at home or the office when you travel?

Fire Safety Tips

• Do you have an escape plan in the event of a fire?
• Do you keep a fire extinguisher next to your stove or oven?
• Are you checking the batteries in your smoke detector periodically?
• Do you keep all lighters and matches in places where kids can not gain access to them?

Your Motor Vehicle

• Do you make it a point to lock up your motor vehicle and close all the windows whenever you park?
• Do you look into the back seat before you unlock and enter your motor vehicle?
• When shopping, do you make an effort to park in well-lit areas of the parking lot and avoid shopping by yourself at night?
• Do you lock your car doors when driving?
• Do you keep your car and house keys on separate key rings?

Sometimes our normal, everyday routines make us a target for criminal activity. Following these simple rules of home security and personal safety can provide you with more protection from crime than purchasing an expensive burglar alarm system.