Burglaries from households in England and Wales increased by 14% during the year 2010-11 according to the British Crime Survey. This rise will be worrying for homeowners, as being the target of burglary can be extremely distressing and expensive. If your home is burgled it’s worth following these 10 easy steps. They’ll help you handle a burglary and also make a successful insurance claim with a loss assessor.
1. In the event that you’ve been burgled, always call the police straight away.You need their documents as proof to process a claim in many cases.
2. Call the authorities from a mobile or from a neighbour’s home if you think the burglars might still be within your property.
3. Don’t try to clean up till after the cops have been and finished the investigations. They are prone to send specialist officers who will take photographs and look for fingerprints, therefore it is important to protect as much proof as you can. They will additionally provide you with a crime number, which you’ll need when making your insurance claim.
4. Check your home carefully for missing and broken items. Draw up a list of everything and then try to include makes, models and serial numbers if you’re able to. It is also useful to include any sort of purchase receipts if you have them.
5. Burglars often look for bank and charge cards. If yours happen to be stolen be sure you contact your bank’s crisis numbers and have them cancelled. These services are usually available 24-hours a day, One year a year so there’s no need to wait until office hours.
6. Check whether any essential paperwork are missing, like your current passport or even driving license. If they are then you may need to contact the appropriate authorities. To find their contact details it really is worth searching online for the best numbers to call up.
7. Speak to your insurance companies and let them know about your burglary. Don’t forget to have your crime number to hand whenever you call. They’ll then begin your insurance claim.
8. If the police have completed their enquiries, your insurance company may arrange to board up any shattered home windows or replace broken locks. If your policy doesn’t include this particular emergency cover, you will have to arrange this on you own. As always you need to use reputable tradespeople, so you may find websites like Checkatrade useful, where you can read reviews of their assistance left by other customers in your local area.
9. Contact professional insurance loss assessors. If required, they can offer assistance by providing approved contractors and locksmiths in order to secure your property. They’ll also help you make an extensive list of all of your taken & broken possessions. They’ll then fully handle your case all through your claim, helping to ensure that you get a complete and also acceptable pay out out of your insurers.
10. Finally, review your security plans. If you haven’t already, think about fitting locks for your windows and security bolts on your doors. You might think about installing a burglar alarm.
