Keeping your valuables safe while traveling may not be your first priority when planning a day outside for fun, but it should be up there toward the top of the list. You don't want to have your day ruined by losing money, or even worse, your credit cards and driver license, when you're out having a good time. With rising financial insecurity everywhere these days, you can be sure thieves and robbers are going to increase in quantity and maybe inventiveness, too, as times get worse.
Where to begin in preparing to protect your valuables? Happy to say, there are plenty of good, often new, items out there in which you can entrust your most precious material possessions.
Use across-the-body type bags. For your day trips and sightseeing excursions, this allows you to keep your belongings closer to you and in a more secure fashion, different from a purse which can easily be snatched from its loose hold on your shoulder. Forget the wallet-in-the-back-pocket style which seems to reign in America. This is like an invitation for sneaky fingers. You can feel more secure with a bag that’s more or less strapped on to you, and it’s harder for them to get it off you (without the use of a knife, that is.)
Use bags that close securely. This means zippers, buttons, even safety pads if the thought appeals to you. Using an across-the-body bag that doesn’t close securely is still a risk: it may be strapped to your body, but a spindly paw can be in and out in a second while you’re craning over the railing to gawk at those ancient ruins.
Personal Safety
Keeping your valuables safe while traveling may not be your first priority when planning a day outside for fun, but it should be up there toward the top of the list. You don't want to have your day ruined by losing money, or even worse, your credit cards and driver license, when you're out having a good time. With rising financial insecurity everywhere these days, you can be sure thieves and robbers are going to increase in quantity and maybe inventiveness, too, as times get worse. Where to begin in preparing to protect your valuables? Happy to say, there are plenty of good, often new, items out there in which you can entrust your most precious material possessions.
- Stay with friends or people you trust. You are a less vulnerable target to thieves as a group.
- Avoid dark areas as much as possible, especially if you are alone. Stay in the well lit, main areas of the event.
- Move away from any dangerous or antisocial behaviour and alert security if they are not already in the immediate vicinity.
- Look after yourself and those around you, even people you don’t know. If you suspect somebody is unwell take them to the first aid tent.
Property and Tent Security
- Only take what you can afford to lose - don’t take your most expensive possessions and personnel equipment.
- Don’t leave valuables unattended - carry money, credit cards, mobile phones and cameras with you at all times or use secure lockups.
- Empty and lock your vehicles, taking any valuables with you. Leave the glove compartment open and conspicuously empty.
- Mark your tent and property with your name and postcode. Thieves don’t want marked property and it will significantly reduce the risk of items being stolen.
- Leave your tent untidy - don’t make it easy for thieves to grab a bag with everything in it.
Money Matters
- Don’t carry too much money and empty your purse or wallet of everything you don’t need before leaving.
- Don't keep all your cash and valuables together – spread them around in different pockets or use secure lockups if they are available.
- If you use cash machines after dark, don’t go alone.
- Only take the credit cards you need. Make a note of the credit card numbers and leave it at home, plus the number to call if they are mislaid.
By: Nancy Kugerman
No comments:
Post a Comment