Steps to Take If Your Burglar Alarm Goes Off

What to Do If Your Alarm System Goes Off

Having an alarm system is a great way to deter burglars from breaking into your home. And while it’s normal to have some false alarms, it’s always incredibly shocking and frightening when your home burglar alarm goes off. Even when you know you’re the one who triggered it, it can be stressful to take the steps it requires to disable the alarm. And what about when it goes off and you didn’t trigger it? Knowing what to do in these situations is the best way to make sure you’re prepared for a potential confrontation with a burglar, or, best case scenario, notify your home security monitoring company that it was a false alarm. Here are the steps to take in either situation.

Step 1: Assess the Situation

Those first jarring moments when you hear your burglar alarm go off can be enough to raise your blood pressure and make you jump out of your skin. Despite the initial shock, you’ll have to act quickly to make sure you can handle whatever situation has caused the alarm to go off.

When You Know Why The Alarm Went Off:

If you know that you are the one who triggered your alarm, simply follow the instructions provided by your home security company. Usually, this will be as straightforward as typing in your password or code to disable the alarm. If you don’t get it right the first time, don’t worry. You’ll be able to communicate with the security professional monitoring your burglar alarm around the clock. Even if all of this results in a police visit, you’re better safe than sorry, and you can simply explain the situation to the officers.

When You DON’T Know Why The Alarm Went Off:

Alternatively, if you are not the one who caused the alarm to go off, you’ll have to proceed differently. First of all, try to stay calm, but act quickly. If you have kids or pets, it’s possible that the burglar alarm was accidentally triggered, but in order to best protect yourself and your family, it’s always best to assume that it’s not a false alarm. Read on to learn how to proceed if this is the case.

Step 2: Know Your Family’s Emergency Plan

While a natural reaction is to try to find and confront the potential burglar, remember one of the main reasons for having an alarm: to protect your home and your family, notifying the police so that they can take care of any criminals. Your home security system is designed to do all of the work for you, so that you can focus on taking care of your family.

Just like you should plan for a fire and know your escape route, you should also plan with your family for any other emergency, including break-ins. Make sure you have prepared and practiced so that you know exactly what to do and where to go in the case of a burglary.

Step 3: Communicate With the Police

Once your security company has sent the police to your house, you have brought your family to safety, and the officers have determined that it’s safe for you to return, it’s important to communicate with the police. Even if it turned out to be a false alarm, it’s a good idea to get perspective from the police to find out what you did right and how you should respond in the future if this happens again. Additionally, if there was a break-in, you’ll have to deal with police reports.

Keep Your Family Safe and Secure At All Times

While these are good general guidelines, make sure that you establish a plan that works for your family. If you have any questions, feel free to contact our experts at Moore Protection for a free security consultation.