Security bars on windows or contents insurance policy. What do you have?

[EmptyHead]

Armed robbieries here while people are in the house are very very very very very rare.

Nonethess, most Thai go for dogs and bars on windows. And i must admit, i sleep better at night with the pooches outside barking at every movement, but i don't have bars on the windows.

Just yesterday we had "motorbike thief gang" going around all the villages in a pick-up in the middle of the day looking for bikes sitting by the side of the road outside peoples' houses. The didn't get any from our vilage. As they were lifting our neighbour's bike up onto the pick-up a 10 year-old girl came out shouting and they sped off at 100km per hour, but they got 3 from another village.

[kannot]

I would say it entirely depends where you live.

Big difference and different issues from beach town, to city ghetto to rural farming area and everything in between.

Security at our house:

1. Stainless steel solid front gates . . . always open;

2. Hardwood front doors . . . always wide open;

3. Hardwood rear doors . . . closed most of the time to keep snakes out, never locked;

4. Windows you can pull out from the outside, no bars;

5. Garden rear gate, bit of wire to keep it from swinging;

6. Scooters in front yard, keys always in ignition;

7. Small safe in kitchen under units . . . need to fix this thing to the wall really.

13 years, never been hit. Country area. Sometimes find the old boy from down the road laid up on the sofa watching the telly. I make him a pot of tea and some grub.

Im glad I dont live in these rough areas described by most posters, I too have 100% no deterrents, I have a big 4.5 metre gap in the wall where a gate should go but never got fitted, the most expensive thing is my laptop followed by the tv......no gold, no dogs, no bars, no staff, live alone.

I do pay the local bib 1000 baht a month for their red box and last month I did have to call them...........I got stuck in some deep mud with the pick up, they pulled me out had a drink then went, he does keep wanting me to buy a rifle though?????

[Expattaff1308]

Does anyone in Thailand have insurance against theft on the contents of a home?

I have it with my building insurance thro MSIG

[thailiketoo]

Does anyone in Thailand have insurance against theft on the contents of a home?

I have it with my building insurance thro MSIG

They only list fire insurance on their web site. You don't have a link to the theft insurance by any chance do you?

[Expattaff1308]

Does anyone in Thailand have insurance against theft on the contents of a home?

I have it with my building insurance thro MSIG

They only list fire insurance on their web site. You don't have a link to the theft insurance by any chance do you?

Sorry no, I do it thro an agent in Udon

[theguyfromanotherforum]

What do you mean under Thai law you are responsible if the building burns down?

[slipperylobster]

It would be also good to checkout the door jamb.

Did anyone notice that alot of these metal security bars are attached with half inch screws. Amazing. One tug with a crow bar opens those babies right up. As well as the door. We have bars on all the windows, but the landlord never even put a deadbolt on the kitchen door.

[NoshowJones]

I have.......

all window openings bar and locking door,

homeowner insurance (own 100%),

Surrounding wall with spikes,

FOUR dogs, and

some person in the house at all times.

Beware of aluminum "security" doors; they can be bent fast with a screw driver, worthless.

Do not forget the transom above the door if it can fit a small Thai thru it.

P.S. Dogs work better in a pack, one alone is usually easily frightened.

I've heard that before here in Thailand, but not necessary referring to dogs.

[NoshowJones]

What do you mean under Thai law you are responsible if the building burns down?

A very good question.

[garyinhuahin]

Living on a cul-de-sac in a police ghetto with hoards of dogs helps...

[jaywalker]

I got them for the Thai mother in law, They bolt on to the wall, they can be taken down and the holes filled, There is one in the front, and one in the back that open from the inside, If there ever was a fire they can get out , you can paint then to blend in with the house colours. OK they may not look good to some , but you can safely sleep at night and not worry and when your out in the day. each to there own though. and they do not cost a great deal.

Methinks those bars are a false sense of security.

A decent crowbar/pry bar or 2 X 4 board & a little willpower and those things pop right out unless they are installed with heavy wing style anchors that expand behind a hollow block..

If some local installs them, they'll most likely have plastic anchors like those used for hanging pictures.

Best option is to try and find a "decent" neighborhood, don't look like you have anything worth stealing, and don't keep a set schedule as to when somebody is at home or away.

Keep a lamp on at night with a fan blowing on something that will move and cause shadows to flicker around.....or install an alarm that's loud as hell.

Mostly don't be a soft target though.

[PhillyBoy]

I don't know what do you think....air bag or car insurance....are you kidding me???

[borrfors]

Since the insurance companies give you so lousy deals in case of a burglary, we decided to install security bars on each windows and doors in our house. It was not especially expensive either. And we got them made with nice decorations that did not make the house look like a prison. If I remember correctly (it was eight years ago we did it) we payed under 30 .000 baht for more than 30 places to cover in the house. Including sliding security doors at the entrance and a security door at the kitchen back door.

Some of the answers on this thread say that security bars can be easily broken. Yes they can, if you install crap. But if you use commin sense and good locks it will be rather difficult for a normal burglar to get in, without make attention to tnemselves during the brak in. And a good watch dog in combination of good security bars beats any security system you can buy.

We also installed mosquito nets on all windows and doors, which makes it possible to have them opened, without risk for day- or nightime burglaries, in order to cool down the house more or less for free. The money you spend on running aircons and fans easily save the cost for this installment in a few years time.

The best way to avoid burglary is to make it dificult and time consuming for a burglar to brake in to your house.. Many of our neighbours have invested in expensive alarm systems, but still had burglairs raided their houses. These day´s people have stop to react on alarm signals, since car alarmas and other similar alarms goes on all the time. And a skilled burglar only need a couple of minutes to do their evil deeds.

So I can strongly recommend good security bars. But do not save money on thin metal ones which easily can be braked off.

You can have the best insurances in the world, but when you get robbed of items with high personal and sentimental value, no money will replace them...

Edited October 25, 2014 by borrfors

[Anon999]

Neither!

Can't stand the sight of security bars or the fact opening the windows or getting out in the event of a fire is nigh on impossible

There are a number of insurers that provide cover for theft, however, like everywhere else burglars are looking for the easy hit so normal security is the best line of defence. If your area is subject to break-ins then maybe you have chosen the wrong place. Check with your neighbours what the situation is. Remember location is very important, so if your house is easy to access and escape from to a main road then the risk is higher.

[Anon999]

I got them for the Thai mother in law, They bolt on to the wall, they can be taken down and the holes filled, There is one in the front, and one in the back that open from the inside, If there ever was a fire they can get out , you can paint then to blend in with the house colours. OK they may not look good to some , but you can safely sleep at night and not worry and when your out in the day. each to there own though. and they do not cost a great deal.

Methinks those bars are a false sense of security.

A decent crowbar/pry bar or 2 X 4 board & a little willpower and those things pop right out unless they are installed with heavy wing style anchors that expand behind a hollow block..

If some local installs them, they'll most likely have plastic anchors like those used for hanging pictures.

Best option is to try and find a "decent" neighborhood, don't look like you have anything worth stealing, and don't keep a set schedule as to when somebody is at home or away.

Keep a lamp on at night with a fan blowing on something that will move and cause shadows to flicker around.....or install an alarm that's loud as hell.

Mostly don't be a soft target though.

You can buy day/night light bulbs that automatically switch on/off, one adjacent to the front door for a start. Also LED security lights plus a couple of motion sensors. Also useful for watering the garden after dark!

The only 2 people I'm aware of that have been burgled, one inadvertently left a downstairs window open and the other left the house unlocked while 'popping out for 10 minutes and the house is nicely situated on the corner of the village with a Soi straight to a main road. Both daytime opportunists.

[rwdrwdrwd]

What do you mean under Thai law you are responsible if the building burns down?

I think I was the one that stated that - I was informed of this by the guys at aainsure (sponsors of one of the forums here) when I contacted them regarding contents insurance. I took their word for it, since they did not try to push for extra coverage in any other manner for any other insurance I took out with them, I organised a few policies at the same time not all related to house insurance and in some cases they suggested taking lesser coverage rather than trying to make a buck. Seemed pretty honest generally.

The reason I was informed was because the first question they asked was to find out who insured the building from the houseowner, since attaching contents policy to that may be a better deal. When I ascertained that there was no building policy in place they were quite adamant that I really should take it out, and mentioned liability in case of fire (and building damage in general iirc).

Perhaps someone from aainsure could comment with more detailed information.

Edited October 25, 2014 by rwdrwdrwd

[jacko45k]

Insurance is not prevention!

Just compensation, but being robbed is soul destroying.

[japsportscarmad]

I got them for the Thai mother in law, They bolt on to the wall, they can be taken down and the holes filled, There is one in the front, and one in the back that open from the inside, If there ever was a fire they can get out , you can paint then to blend in with the house colours. OK they may not look good to some , but you can safely sleep at night and not worry and when your out in the day. each to there own though. and they do not cost a great deal.

Methinks those bars are a false sense of security.

A decent crowbar/pry bar or 2 X 4 board & a little willpower and those things pop right out unless they are installed with heavy wing style anchors that expand behind a hollow block..

If some local installs them, they'll most likely have plastic anchors like those used for hanging pictures.

Best option is to try and find a "decent" neighborhood, don't look like you have anything worth stealing, and don't keep a set schedule as to when somebody is at home or away.

Keep a lamp on at night with a fan blowing on something that will move and cause shadows to flicker around.....or install an alarm that's loud as hell.

Mostly don't be a soft target though.

You can buy day/night light bulbs that automatically switch on/off, one adjacent to the front door for a start. Also LED security lights plus a couple of motion sensors. Also useful for watering the garden after dark!

The only 2 people I'm aware of that have been burgled, one inadvertently left a downstairs window open and the other left the house unlocked while 'popping out for 10 minutes and the house is nicely situated on the corner of the village with a Soi straight to a main road. Both daytime opportunists.

We've got some LED option but motorised lights from COSTCO that track a heat source and the light follows it. They seem to deter anyone as not common here, also have a camera function on SD card but never used that, they're about 1.25 kilos and £ 100 if you know anyone travelling back from the UK?

We live in a secure site in any case but Thailand's still relatively a poor country for many so best to be aware of opportunist theft like your friend with the window.

[poweratradio]

Any security bars that could be removed by the OP on departure could be removed the same way by a nefarious person I would think??

[poulet]

If you need them just get a welder to make them.

A few pieces of 2" x 2" steel does not break the bank. Just order new ones at next house if needed there...

If current landlord will not pay for them at all, just dismantle and give away on departure...

They are a pain for fire... I have them and know if a fire occurred they will cause problems... But I have also been tied up and mugged at gunpoint (not in LOS)...

[japsportscarmad]

Do you not have a gun in the house? They tend to stop burglars and you will not be arrested if someone breaks in and you shoot them as long as the guns within caliber and legal.

[misterphil]

We have the following:

Security Bars, if intruders get passed the security bars, Doberman, If they get past the dog, machete and a baseball bat beside the bed. If they get passed me with a machete and a baseball bat, then I'll set the wife on them.

[japsportscarmad]

We have the following:

Security Bars, if intruders get passed the security bars, Doberman, If they get past the dog, machete and a baseball bat beside the bed. If they get passed me with a machete and a baseball bat, then I'll set the wife on them.

Doberman - how I miss a dog but travel too much.

[Water Buffalo]

Where has the best stock of security bars? I mean the big chain stores around the country (Watsadu, Global, Home Hub etc etc)?

I have looked around in most of these places but don't see much

[Langsuan Man]

Where has the best stock of security bars? I mean the big chain stores around the country (Watsadu, Global, Home Hub etc etc)?

I have looked around in most of these places but don't see much

That is because security bars are custom made in Thailand by local fabricators. You say you haven't seen much, I am surprised that you have seen any !

[apetley]

Where has the best stock of security bars? I mean the big chain stores around the country (Watsadu, Global, Home Hub etc etc)?

I have looked around in most of these places but don't see much

That is because security bars are custom made in Thailand by local fabricators. You say you haven't seen much, I am surprised that you have seen any !

Home Pro have been selling security screens in some of their stores.