Friday morning it happened again. A small commotion, police officers and fingerprint specialists arrive on the scene, and afterwards locks need to be replaced. Although I was lucky this time and found my car with the boot wide open, but still there, the neighbours were less fortunate and lost their car and other valuables. With the previous round of break-ins it was my turn.

Unlike love, very few would say that it’s better to have owned and lost than never to have owned at all. Losing jewellery or gifts that are irreplaceable and carry so much sentimental value always feels pretty senseless. How can you cushion yourself against the blow?

Keep your insurance up to date.

Do you have a household inventory? Check whether the contents cover of your insurance policy has kept up with your purchases. If, for example, the assessor values your household content at R100 000, but you are only covered for R50 000, you carry the excess amount plus 50% of the value of items stolen. If a claim of R10 000 is approved, the insurance company will pay only the 50% risk that it carried (R5 000) less the excess amount. Specifically mention personal purchases, like cameras and spectacles, in the ‘General all-risk’ section of your policy.

Make sure you can prove ownership.

Knowing insurance companies, you’ll probably end up with a ring from Sterns if you don’t have a photograph and the receipt of your Uwe Koetter wedding band. Preferably keep this evidence in a place where the burglars won’t be able to find them, for example on a secure website or as attachments in your Gmail account. Also, specify your jewellery in the ‘specified all-risk’ section of your policy.

Know your rights.

You can appeal when the insurance company does not accept your claim. It may be good to have a broker on your side if you want to win this battle.

Don’t attract attention.

This one I learned from my domestic. Draw the curtains when you’re not home or when you have the garden services/maintenance around the house. What people can’t see, they generally don’t know they want.

Invest in a home safe.

This has saved me plenty of tears with my last burglary. Make sure you bolt it into a corner of a room, where it is most difficult to use leverage to break it out of the wall again.

Despite all of these precautions, I sincerely hope you never need to claim again…