According to recent FBI statistics, the numbers of home break ins have declined over the last few years. Brandon Wachs of Shark Eyes, Inc. claims that despite the decrease in numbers, it’s still important to be prepared and minimize the risk of you or your family coming to serious harm.
It’s one thing to fully recognize and comprehend this undesirable possibility, it’s another to do something about it. For this article, we’ve talked to some of our peers about the exact things to do if someone breaks into your house. Here are their thoughts:
1. Assess the Situation
The first and foremost thing to do is to lock the widest area of the house where they’ve not reached yet, and with a medium of communication. For example, if you’re in a room with a window or anything to escape, lock the room, and think if you have a phone. Next, call for help. The first call should be to police officials and next to someone from your family who could help in this matter. If you have time, broadcast a message to some family/workgroup too.
Now, from the locked place, you should check if it’s just one person or many, do they have arms or not, and so on. If it is a group and is armed, there’s no need to think of fighting. You should find an escape from home. Also, check if they have their people outside the home.
If there are more people (and armed), just calm down and wait for authorities to arrive. However, in the case of one or two unarmed people, you should call the police, lock yourself up, and shout for help so that they get frightened. If you have some sort of training in martial arts or fighting, you should combat, but if and only if you’re sure they are unarmed, or if they have caught any of your family members.
– Kelsey Chan, Marketing Specialist, Coco Sign
2. Call the Police Discreetly or Have Someone Ring Them for You
The first thing to do if you think someone is breaking into your house—and you are home—is to call the police, or if you think they’ll discover you before you get through, text someone you know will respond to call the police on your behalf and send them to the house.
I think it’s best not to engage with robbers and remain where you are in the hope that they will take what they want to and leave. You can always replace your TV or jewelry and you want to minimize the risk of getting hurt as they may be carrying a knife or gun.
– Rick Wallace, Founder, Navient Settlements
3.Have a Meeting Point and/or a Code Word
There are a few things you can do if someone breaks into your house. The first thing is if you’re a practitioner of firearms and train regularly so that when you need to use it isn’t a mystery.
Understand the layout of your home so that in a low-light situation you know how to maneuver and get any form of a protection device to defend yourself that may have been placed while hiding in plain sight (i.e. Baseball Bat, Fireplace Poker, etc). Last advice for your loved ones in the house is to have a meeting point when a codeword is used and from that point attempt to exit the premises and seek out assistance from a neighbor.
– Michael Woodland, Owner and Founder, Munitions Weapons Tactical
4. Don’t Be a “Hero”
The idea of someone breaking into my house made me think seriously about what I would do now, as a father of two young kids, compared to a few years ago before I had them.
First and foremost, you have to consider the safety of your family. Lock them and yourself into a room. Barricade it if necessary, before calling the police or raising the alarm. Make a noise and loudly inform the intruders that you have done so, and help is imminent.
However, the most important thing is what you don’t do. If you have children in the home, you shouldn’t challenge the intruder. No place for heroics when your kids are at potential risk.
– Dave Pedley, Founder and Editor, Your Cub
In Conclusion
Our friend Brandon Wachs perfectly summarizes everything. Staying calm is easier said than done, but it’s important not to panic. Call 911 for immediate assistance Try to ascertain if you can escape through an exit. If this isn’t an option, find a place to hide.
Don’t try to confront the intruder. They usually just want to steal your stuff and have no intention of hurting you but may do so if the situation escalates. Don’t use weapons unless trained. They could be used against you and producing a weapon may spook them and make them more likely to use theirs.
Again, try to remain calm and just let them take what they came for and leave. Your insurance will cover any losses and no material possession is worth risking your life for or the lives of your family.
Korey has been a security consultant for fortune 500 companies, focused on penetration testing (pen testing) and executive asset protection for over 15 years.
Based on Rhode Island, Korey believes everyone should be mindful of security — especially in these times where information is passed through everywhere we go and is passionate about sharing solutions no matter what your budget is.
