It was 9.30pm and I was watching Thursday night football on television when the doorbell rang.

All the other occupants of our house were in bed asleep – except for our Jack Russell dog. 

Hardly a guard dog, but she was quick to run to the door.

But I was too scared to answer the door. Who rings at 9.30 at night?

I woke up my husband to tell him that someone was at our door, but by the time he opened the door, the person had left.

Our doorbell has a camera linked to an app on our phones – my husband thought it could be one of our neighbours in the video but wasn’t completely sure.

Why would a neighbour be ringing our doorbell at 9.30pm? Or if it wasn’t a neighbour, what did that person want?

Living in a fairly quiet estate on the fringe of Horsham, not a lot happens after dark. Or that we know of.

The following night the doorbell rang again, albeit a little earlier, and my husband answered. 

It was our neighbour from across the road, telling us he had seen on his security cameras the night before two men trying to break into our garage and gate.

Ironically, I didn’t need to fear the person ringing the doorbell – but rather, what he told us was the unsettling part.

What followed was immediate checks of our backyard and trying to improve security with what we had at home – a padlock on the gate, making sure all doors and windows were locked, and an online search for how we could make our property safer.

Over the weekend, a trip to the hardware store resulted in a sensor light and a relatively inexpensive camera we could install ourselves at the rear of our property to connect to the same door system. We also started looking into a proper security camera system.

It was a timely reminder to make sure our property was as safe and secure as it possibly could be.

Even if you think you live in a safer area – nowhere is immune to thieves. A handy resource on the Victoria Police website gave tips to prevent home burglaries.

It said to prevent homes being broken into: secure the property; secure valuables; make it look like someone is home when you are out or away; and make it harder for thieves to get in without being seen.

It was all common-sense advice about burglary prevention but it did include key points about locking things I hadn’t really considered before, like skylights and pet doors.

The website also provided tips on acts that home-owners can undertake – such as removing spare keys hidden outside your home; installing a peephole to see who is at the door; and installing a security screen door, monitored alarm system, cameras, and sensor lighting.

It also has information on securing valuables both inside and outside of the house – installing GPS trackers and tags on vehicles; keeping tools and ladders locked away so thieves can’t use them to access a home; backing up computer data; and marking valuables with ‘V’ followed by your driver’s licence number for identification purposes.

It also covers advice on what to do when you go away and what to do if your home is broken into.

Police advice mentions about neighbours – how sharing information and helping each other out can be invaluable.

We are grateful to our neighbours for letting us know what they saw on their security cameras – otherwise we would have no idea what was occurring in our own backyard.

People wanting more information on security tips can visit www.police.vic.gov.au/preventing-home-burglaries.

The entire May 20, 2026 edition of The Weekly Advertiser is available online. READ IT HERE!