Are you wondering why you should never confront a burglar? For most people, the thought of a home invasion is something that will never happen. However, property crimes happen a lot more often than people believe. There is an estimated burglary every 13 seconds in the United States, according to Alarms.org.
When a burglar enters your home, it’s best to avoid confronting them directly or trying to stop them. Most burglars use weapons to hurt victims if they attempt to interrupt the crime. The ideal reaction to a home invasion is escaping the property and calling the police.
As security professionals, we want you to prepare for a home invasion. If you want to remain safe, you need to expect this event might happen to you. It’s important to develop realistic mindsets about a home invasion happening to you. Keep reading further to learn why you should never confront a burglar.
The Dangers of Confronting a Burglar
While most people want to defend their property, the best option is not to confront the criminal. It may be difficult to see your precious belongings stolen, but you will stay alive and live to see another day. According to crime statistics, there were 266,560 people injured during a home invasion.
You will never know what a burglar has on them and the intentions inside your home. Home invasions come with many factors that can result in a dangerous situation. There may be a group of burglars in your home or they have a lethal weapon like a gun. By escaping the situation, you let law enforcement do their job and catch the criminals.
Steps For Safely Handling a Home Invasion
Step 1: Evacuate The Property If Possible
In the best-case scenario, you have the option to leave your home quickly without being spotted by a burglar. Evacuating you and your family is the best chance of not being harmed during a burglary. If you want to be proactive, you can create an evacuation plan and develop escape routes.
Some of the most common exit points of your home are:
- Windows
- Back Doors
- Garage Door
- Roof Access
Step 2: Stay Quiet and Hide in a Safe Room
If you can’t find an exit from your home, the next best option is to find a safe hiding spot. By staying quiet and locking yourself in a room, you can wait until the home invasion is over. In most cases, the bathroom is the best option for a safe area. Burglars typically don’t check a bathroom for valuable items.
While hiding, try your best not to make any loud noises that could alert someone of your presence. Additionally, you can barricade the door and use locking techniques to secure the door. Remain calm and wait for your opportunity to escape or until the burglar has left the property.
Step 3: Call the Police
Once you have put yourself in a safe position, your next step should be calling the police. With police departments taking at least 8-12 minutes to reach your location, you must ensure you are safe before calling. After calling for help, you should remain quiet and wait for law enforcement to arrive.
If you can leave the property, you should run as far as possible and stay with a neighbor until help arrives. In case you can’t reach your phone for help, you should ask a neighbor to call the police for you. Additionally, you can protect your home with a security system that will do the calling for you.
Step 4: Negotiate With Burglar
If you are caught in an unfortunate situation confronting a burglar, you should attempt to negotiate with them. Make peace with the burglar by letting them take items in your home if they do not harm you or your family. Try to remain calm and not act irrationally when speaking to a criminal.
Most burglars don’t want to confront someone, so they will likely take items and leave quickly. Once they take the items, you can call law enforcement to report the crime. Fortunately, if you confront a burglar, you will have a better chance of identifying the features of the criminal to law enforcement.
Step 5: Fight Back as Last Resort
You will need to fight back against the burglar when you have no other options. While you shouldn’t start a fight against a burglar, you may be left with no other choice. Use any object around you to hit the criminal while looking for an open exit. Don’t look to hurt the burglar, but you should find a way to escape.
Important: Fighting a burglar should be your final option after trying the other steps in this article. You risk your life when you attempt to fight a burglar or group of burglars on your property. Hopefully, we have given you enough reasons why you should never confront a burglar.
Conclusion
A large part of self-defense is knowing when to escape the situation. There are a lot of reasons why you should never confront a burglar. Don’t put yourself at risk, and evacuate your property quickly. If you can’t leave your home, you should negotiate with the burglar and fight back as a last resort.
With these things in mind, you can make the right decision if you ever encounter a burglar in your home.