State Office:
Neighbourhood Watch Victoria
Victoria Police Centre
311 Spencer Street
Docklands VIC 3008
General Enquiries: (03) 8335 6002
Media Enquiries: ceo@nhw.com.au
ABN: 41 586 657 273
Incorporation Number: A0018739R
If you think your spare key hiding place is sneaky, chances are so does a thief.
We break down the most common places people hide their spare house keys and where you should be leaving it.
There is no such thing as a good place to hide your spare house keys. Thieves know all the hiding spots – even the less obvious ones.
Breaking into houses is a largely opportunistic crime. Thieves may see something they want to steal and when they get the chance, they seize the opportunity and go for it.
The best way to prevent this happening is to make it harder for thieves to get a chance to enter your home. Leaving spare keys where thieves have no chance of finding them, gives them one less opportunity.
Some of the most common hiding places people leave a spare key include:
While these spots might be convenient for family members or housemates to use when they need to access your house, they are just as convenient for thieves.
The most secure place you can hide your spare keys is with trusted neighbour, friend or family member who lives close by.
Keeping your keys somewhere away from your home takes away an opportunity for a thief to break in and can help protect your house from theft.
If this isn’t an option, it might be time to get creative with hiding spots.
One inventive way we have recently heard is to hide your key without any identification in a park that’s 10 minutes away from your house! Although we don’t recommend this to everyone, it shows how you might start thinking outside the box for your next hiding spot.
With the use of key safes on the rise, we often get asked, how safe they really are. Well, it really depends on the quality of your key safe, where you locate it and how you secure it.
While key safes are a convenient solution for many homeowners, they’re not foolproof. Most key safes can be quickly smashed open with a hammer and a bit of brute force.
We advise that if you want to have a key safe, then make sure you:
Neighbourhood Watch Victoria acknowledges the 38 mobs, the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we operate, live, and gather as employees and volunteers. We recognise their continuing connection to land, water and community and pay respect to Elders past, present and emerging.
At Neighbourhood Watch, we believe everyone has the right to feel safe and welcome. We are committed to ensuring diversity, inclusion and equity are embedded throughout our organisation – in the work we do, the services we deliver and among our staff, volunteers, and the communities we work with.
Neighbourhood Watch Victoria
Victoria Police Centre
311 Spencer Street
Docklands VIC 3008
General Enquiries: (03) 8335 6002
Media Enquiries: ceo@nhw.com.au
ABN: 41 586 657 273
Incorporation Number: A0018739R