How to Respond When a Burglar Breaks Into Your Home

Your home is like a castle that you always want to be safe and secure in. Unfortunately, thieves can break into your home and rummage through to steal money and valuables. Usually they just want to get things without harming the owner, but these guys are scary anyway! If you hear someone breaking into your home, try to hide if you can. Another solution is to tell the thief that you called the police and use household items to fight back. Meanwhile, you should strengthen your house so that your house is not easily broken into.

Table of Contents

Hide from thieves

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Get out of the house if possible. In general, it is better to leave the house when there is an intruder. Run to the nearest door or window to escape. Once it’s safe, call the police for help. ^{[1] X Research Source}

If there are neighbors nearby, run to their house to be safe. If not, find somewhere you can hide, such as in a grove or behind a fence.

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Hide in the nearest room or in a closet with a lockable door inside. Look around and choose the safest place to hide. If possible, go to a locked room or closet. Enter the room and lock the door. ^{[2] X Research Source}

You can also find a place to hide in the room. For example, you can get under the bed or hide in the closet to hide better.

Another solution: If there is a safe room in the house, try to enter that room, but be very careful when moving around to avoid encountering an intruder.

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Block the door to prevent thieves from entering the room. If possible, push heavy furniture blocking the door so it won’t open. Another way is to insert a recliner under the door handle to make it difficult for the outside to push the door in. If the door is facing outwards, tie a belt around the doorknob and the legs of a heavy piece of furniture. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

For example, you can push the wardrobe in front of the bedroom door, then sit behind the dresser.

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Do your best to keep quiet so that thieves do not find out. Once you’re in hiding, try not to make any noise. Do not talk unless you call emergency services to report a burglar in your home. Also, don’t move or move anything. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

Make sure the phone is in vibrate or silent mode.
Don’t try to change cover. You will make noise and possibly attract attention.

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Listen carefully so as not to be attacked by surprise. It sounds scary, but there’s a good chance thieves will search your home for valuables. They can get to the room you’re hiding in before the police arrive. Listen to what the thieves are doing. Pay attention to the following clues: ^{[5] X Research Sources}

Do you hear footsteps or other noises approaching you? If so, be prepared to flee or fight back.
Do you sound like the thief is talking to someone? If so then maybe there’s not just one name.
Do you hear thieves picking up your possessions and putting them in your pocket? This can help you guess where they are.

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Call the police when you are in a safe hiding place. Once you have found a hiding place, you can use your mobile phone to call for help. Tell the dispatcher your name and home address and tell them there’s a burglar in your home. Explain that you are hiding from them so you need to keep quiet. Hold the phone until they tell you to hang up. ^{[6] X Research Sources}

Keep the phone at a low volume when calling for help to reduce the risk of being overheard.

Tip: Don’t worry about you calling the police in a false alarm situation. If you feel scared, just call the police just to be safe.

Confront the intruder

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Only face an intruder when it is impossible to hide. In general, it is safer to avoid confronting an intruder than to confront them. You don’t know the burglar’s motives for entering your home, and they may panic and harm you when they find you. Try to find a way to escape or hide well.

Safety first. Don’t risk your life to save property!
Remember that an intruder is more likely to be caught if you hide and call the police. If thieves think you’re not at home, they’ll still be in your house when the police arrive.

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Shout “I called the police” to scare the thief away. If you are exposed or can’t find a place to hide, scream that you have called the police. Scream several times to make sure they hear. This can scare the intruder away and automatically leave your home. ^{[7] X Research Sources}

You can shout to the thief “I called the police! Police 113 is coming! They will come at any moment!”

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Get a weapon for self-defense if you have one. Maybe you’ve armed yourself with a gun. If so, get your gun out as soon as you hear the burglar break in and get ready to defend yourself. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

You can warn thieves that you have a gun, such as “I have a gun!” However, it is possible that the intruder who broke into your home also had a gun.
In some areas, you have the right to shoot an intruder. However, there are still rules about what is legal, so you should check your local laws. For example, you are not allowed to shoot at an intruder leaving your home.

Warning If you want to arm yourself with a gun, you need to attend a training program to learn how to protect yourself properly. Learn how to load ammunition, how to shoot accurately, and prevent others from stealing weapons.

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Grab a knife if you’re near the kitchen. Don’t try to go to the kitchen to get a knife, but if you’re nearby, grab it when you hear thieves. Have a knife in hand so you can surprise an intruder if they approach you. ^{[9] X Research Source}

Knives are very powerful weapons but are sometimes difficult to use and can be taken away. Don’t approach thieves with a knife, you should just use a knife to scare them away.

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Grab a heavy object that can be used as a weapon. To defeat someone, you don’t need a common weapon. Use an item as a temporary weapon to give yourself an advantage against an intruder. Attack the thief with your weapon if they come near. Some household items that you might use are a baseball bat, a heavy pot or pan, a table lamp, a heavy trophy, or a bottle of wine.

To prevent burglars from entering your home, place a few heavy objects scattered throughout the house, such as by the bed, under the sofa or in the drawers. If there is a thief, you can quickly get these items in any room in the house.

Stay safe at home

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Practice in advance a plan to stay safe in the event of a home break-in. Don’t worry too much about burglars entering your home, as most likely you are still safe. However, it is also helpful to practice in advance how to deal with an intruder so that you can be prepared. Plan with your family and practice in advance so you’re ready to go. Here are some things you should consider: ^{[10] X Research Sources}

Establish an escape route from the bedroom and common areas.
Convention a word to alert other members of the house about an intruder.
Choose an area for all family members to come together.
Create a safe room by installing heavy duty and lockable doors in certain rooms.

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Always close doors and windows. Don’t make it easy for thieves to enter your home. You should close and fasten all doors and windows, even when you are at home. This will make it difficult for thieves to break in. ^{[11] X Research Source}

Check doors and windows before going to bed each night to make sure they are locked.
Install more bolts on the door opening to the outside.

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Store valuables in the garage. Thieves tend to choose things that are easy to get, so they won’t be able to pass up items like bicycles or expensive tools. Keep these things in the garage when not in use, and tell the kids not to leave them in the yard. ^{[12] X Research Source}

Thieves can see these lying out in the yard as they roam around houses looking for targets and then return to steal.

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Prune trees around the house so thieves don’t have a place to hide. You may think that trees and bushes help shield your home, but they are actually shielding from intruders. Thieves can easily snoop around the house if covered by foliage. Get rid of these hiding places by trimming back weeds and overgrown bushes. ^{[13] X Trusted Source Consumer Reports Go to Source}

If your home has multiple floors, cut down tree branches that thieves can use to gain access to windows or balconies.

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Install outdoor lights so crooks feel exposed. Thieves want to hide in the dark, so they’ll probably avoid your home if they see it’s well-lit. Install lights above the doors and leave them on when it gets dark. In addition, you should also install motion sensor headlights above the garage and on the side of the house. ^{[14] X Trusted Source Consumer Reports Go to Source}

Check lighting areas around the house for safety.

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Hang curtains to prevent potential burglars from seeing your possessions. When spying on the house to steal, the crook will look through the window to see if there is something valuable in your house. You can make it difficult for them by installing curtains or drapes over the windows. This will make your home less attractive to thieves. ^{[15] X Research Source}

At night you need to cover the windows even more. If you turn on the lights in the house, the things in the room will be obvious when viewed from the outside.

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Install security cameras on the front door or garage as a deterrent. Thieves don’t want to be videotaped, so they’ll likely avoid your home if they see a camera there. Moreover, if they actually broke into the house, you also have evidence to present to the police. Install a camera on the door of your house or garage to deter those who are peeking at your home. ^{[16] X Research Source}

The camera will be more effective as a deterrent if the intruder is easily seen.

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Install a home alarm system to scare off burglars and call for help. An alarm system in your home can frustrate any burglars trying to enter your home. Plus, it will alert the police, and you’ll get help quicker. Research home alarm system companies to find the right one for your needs and preferences and install it. ^{[17] X Research Source}

Be sure to put up an alarm company sign outside your home so burglars know you’re protected.

Advice

Thieves often target homes where owners are away, so they’ll often run away if they know you’re home. However, do not rely on this! It’s best to hide if you can.
If you can see the thief, try to remember as many details as possible. If they escape, you can provide information to the police to track down the thief.
If you want a pet, consider getting a large dog to discourage thieves.
If you’re really worried about being broken into, consider learning how to defend yourself. This way you will be prepared to fight back against the attacker and more confident in critical situations.
If you use your cell phone to call emergency services, keep the phone on vibrate. Otherwise, the phone will ring loudly when they need to call back and the thief will know your location.

Warning

Learn the laws about the right to self-defense. Although some regions allow the use of lethal force when an intruder enters a home, many other regions have different definitions of “reasonable force”.
Call the police if your home is burgled so they can investigate.

Steps

Hide from thieves

Confront the intruder

Stay safe at home

Advice

Warning

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