LFPD Offers 'Vacation Watches' For Residents Heading Out of Town

LAKE FOREST, IL - The Lake Forest Police Department will offer "vacation watch" services again this winter.

Before heading out of town, residents are invited to call the department to request an officer periodically check on their home.

"We ask a series of questions and try to obtain contact info for them as well as a local person who can help if we discover a problem with the home," said Lake Forest Police Chief Karl Walldorf. "Then, while they are gone, our officers periodically stop and check the home by walking around it."

If something is amiss, police will get in touch with the local contact and find a way to alert the owner.

In most cases "the house is fine," Walldorf said, but there have been instances of burglaries and weather damage being discovered. In each of those cases, police were able to assist with mediating the problem.

In addition to noting the "vacation watch" option, the city of Lake Forest has also provided the following vacation tips in the most recent issue of The Dialogue.

• Disconnect your garage door opener and make sure the door cannot be opened. Also lock the door between the garage and the inside of the house.

• Give a key and the alarm code to someone in the vicinity who can check on the house periodically. They can bring any deliveries inside and can check the interior for any issues. Ask them to open and close curtains and/or turn on and off lights to give the appearance that the house is occupied. They can also respond in the case of a burglar or fire alarm.

• For extended absences, have someone care for the exterior of the property, such as shoveling snow.

• Install timers on each level of your home. Lights, radios, or TVs that turn on and off help make the property look occupied and can deter burglars.

• Never hide a key outside your house. Burglars are very aware of many hide-a-key tricks.

• Stop all deliveries to your house: suspend mail and newspaper subscriptions.

• Don’t advertise you are going out of town. The more people who know your house is vacant, the more vulnerable you are. Save your Facebook and Instagram posts for when you return.

• Don’t list you home address on any luggage tags. Your cell phone number and/or email address should be all you need to re-connect with any lost luggage.

For vacation watches, call the Police Department at 847-234-2601.

File photo