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It’s every homeowner’s nightmare. You pull in the driveway to see your front door has been kicked in or a window shattered. You can’t think clearly, worrying about what’s been stolen and the damage to your home. What can you do? Remain calm, take a deep breath, and follow our recommendations after a break-in at your Evanston home.  

Once the dust settles, explore how to better prevent break-ins with an advanced security system.

Immediate Steps After A Break-In

Finding your house has been burglarized is traumatizing. You may be frightened, angry, or just in disbelief. Whatever you’re feeling, it’s important to respond rationally by doing the following: 

• Stay outside. It may be tempting to rush inside to look around. Don’t. There’s a possibility an intruder is still present.
• Contact the police immediately.  Keep yourself and others at a safe spot nearby and wait until help gets there. Work with law enforcement to make an official report. 
• Avoid touching anything. Let the police secure the scene and collect evidence.  

What Are The Next Steps?

You’ve spoken with law enforcement, and it’s safe to go back inside. What are the next steps? 

• Alert your bank and credit card companies . If a thief grabbed wallets, purses, or private documents, you must contact your credit card companies and banks at once. It’s smart to freeze accounts and your credit. You can also place a fraud alert with credit bureaus.
• Call your insurance provider. File a claim with your insurance provider. This should be done within a day of the break-in. 
• Record damage on camera. Document smashed windows, forced doors, and all other detectable damage.
• Inventory stolen goods. Create a record of what’s missing and provide it to the authorities and your insurance provider.
• Secure your property. Restore your home’s security by installing new locks, fixing windows and doors, and taking care of other damage. If you use a keypad lock system, now is the time to reset your access codes.

Tidying up will help ease your mind and make things feel normal. After you do so, it’s time to consider enhancing your home security.

Evaluate And Upgrade Your Evanston Home’s Security

How can you keep this from occuring again? Your starting point should be to evaluate your home security. A new system with these tools will work wonders in strengthening your home’s protection: 

• Video cameras: Nearly all would-be burglars will hesitate when they notice security cameras. Modern outdoor and doorbell cameras offer advanced functionality like AI-driven smart detection. Any time there’s questionable activity, you’ll be sent an alert. 
• Entry-point sensors: All doors and windows (particularly those on the lower level) should be safeguarded by contact or glass-break sensors.
• Smart lights and locks: These automated tools can be controlled from anywhere. Concerned you didn’t secure your door? You can check and engage the lock from your smartphone. You can even have interior lights switch on if a camera discovers suspicious activity.

If you are looking for a connected system that alerts you and monitoring representatives whenever a device is set off, get a package from the home security experts at ADT. You’ll benefit from remote access, round-the-clock monitoring, and advanced automation.

Avoid Break-Ins With The Best Home Security In Evanston

Stop burglaries at your property with an ADT home security package in Evanston from Secure24 Alarm Systems. As your trusted ADT dealer, we install the latest equipment from the top name in the business. Learn more about your options by calling (847) 268-7321 or completing our form today.