Self-Defence and your Rights
M-Net’s Carte Blanche insert on Sunday 27 May 2018 Self-Defence and Your Rights has stirred up a hornet’s nest. More people now feel helpless in the face of rapidly rising home invasions or torn between protecting their family and facing possible jail time. You may not be entitled to shoot a home invader, but you can be pro-active in an attempt keep them out of your home in the first place.
Protect lives not property
The home invader interviewed on Carte Blanche said that they see home invasions as a job and are well prepared. It is a lucrative career in spite of the risks. They work in experienced teams and are prepared to shoot if necessary.
So the lesson here is to make sure they will struggle to get into your home in the first place. Make them think twice before trying to break in. Install highly visible burglar proofing and security gates on every door and window.
Make sure it is the highest quality you can afford, giving you as much time as possible to escape if they do give it a go.
DIY and poor quality products can be kicked out within seconds
Top quality products take a lot longer and are not worth the time it takes for robbers, remembering that they only have on average 15 minutes to get inside before the police arrive.
Safe zones save lives
You can never be sure how you will react to a home invasion until you’ve experienced one.
Will your response be flight, fight or freeze? Don’t wait to find out. Rather create a safe zone to sleep in at home so that you are never caught by surprise with a gun to your head.
The plan here is to install a gate or door in the passage to your bedroom area. Again, good quality is critical to how long it will stand up to an assault.
Consider automated roller shutters or sliding steel gates that will be noisy to attack and will buy you time to call for help.
Then ensure that every window and external doors in this area are protected by high quality burglar proofing.
At least one of these windows must have burglar proofing that can be unlocked and opened if you need to escape your home.
Options here include security shutters, sliding steel gates, louvre shutters or roller shutters.
Remote controls and keys to security gates, burglar proofing, doors and windows must be stored in this safe zone. It is no good hanging all your keys in the living area for home invaders to use if they break in.
Vigilance is key
It was quoted in the Carte Blanche insert by Devi Sankaree Govender that 60 robberies occur around South Africa every single day. Gareth Newham of the Institute for Security Studies said that house robberies have increased by 40% since 2012.
This should be a good motivation to be vigilant about your security.
If you’ve gone to the trouble and expense to secure your home properly, make sure you keep those security gates and that burglar proofing locked at all times, especially when you leave doors or windows open for fresh air.
Call in the experts
Trellidor franchises are all very experienced in helping customers make their homes as difficult as possible for home invaders to get inside.
Call in your local franchise and they will help you with a plan to do this within your budget and to suit your lifestyle.
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