Got Something to Hide?

The air is getting warmer and sunshine is lasting longer – summer is coming. Many of you have started to plan well-deserved summer vacations. You’re daydreaming about relaxation or adventure, perusing Pinterest for clothing ideas and already envisioning your social media overshares. This week, we will not be reminding you to set a budget for vacation (and you thought you knew us so well). Instead of going on about how to keep cash in your wallet during your trip, we’d like to share some top tips on how to protect other valuables while you’re away. As your trip nears and you run through all of the little things that must be done before checking out, take a minute to think about where to hide – or not to hide – your valuables.

If you’ve stashed valuables in the following places, know that most criminals are on to you:

Jewelry box

File cabinet

Nightstand

Underwear/sock drawer

Under the mattress

Cookie jar

Freezer (yes, they’ve even figured this one out)

Toilet tank

Kids’ rooms (valuable techy toys make kids’ rooms prime for the picking)

Instead, think outside the freezer box and consider:

A hollowed book (if you have a big enough library)

False bottom of kitchen/bathroom trashcan

False or empty cleaning bottles

Floor safe (many wall safes can be easily cut out and carried)

Garage/attic boxes (marked with mundane labels such as “x-mas ornaments”)

Making $ense of Personal Property Rider

Often added to homeowners or renter’s insurance, a provision that provides additional coverage for certain items that are worth more than the per-item limit in the policy. Common items that are scheduled on a personal property rider include jewelry, art and antiques.