Holiday Safety tips for Las Vegas residents

Christmas in downtown Las Vegas (Photo credit: Old Shoe Woman)

Holiday safety tips

The holiday shopping season kicks off earlier and earlier each year with many brick and mortar stores offering fantastic discounts.

Our holiday safety tips can be helpful to most everyone, however, they are designed especially with the Las Vegas 24/7 environment in mind.

November and December are traditionally the two months that robberies and burglaries rise.

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Sometimes, these crimes are very violent.

People become more desperate and brazen during this time and also know that many people with be carrying extra cash on them to shop for the holiday season.

Here are some holiday safety tips.

Use caution when shopping

When visiting a shopping mall or strip mall, try to park nearby in a well-lighted area, particularly at night.

If you return to your car between trips to put items in your car, make sure they are out of view. It is also a good idea to move your car to a different location and be sure that no one is watching you.

Be sure to have your keys in an easily accessible place when getting into and out of your car.

If feasible, try to make one trip to your car with all of your packages. Open your drivers door and quickly put your items in the car and drive away.

Do not linger in your car to organize receipts, make phone calls or count your money.

If paying with cash as many people in Las Vegas do, avoid pulling out large wads of cash at the register. You never know who is watching..

Make sure you have bills broken down. People in Las Vegas seem to have an affinity for carrying $100 bills.

Holiday safety tips in your home

Use a timer or leave a light on when gone for extended periods.

Do not leave presents in a place where they can be seen from the outside.

If you purchase a lot of high-ticket items for your home, take apart the boxes and seal them in a plastic bag before discarding.  Many would be robbers case out a home by looking through the trash to see what someone has purchased. For added security, cut up the boxes first.

Do not open your door to people you do not know, or are not expecting. A giant red flag should go up if a casual acquaintance shows up at your door.

Holiday safety tips around town

Be careful in casino parking lots and garages, especially if you have won any money or cashed your paycheck.

Use the same caution when exiting a bank after withdrawing funds.

Avoid using outdoor ATM’s or drive-up ATM’s in desolated areas.

Use caution when visiting a gas station. Consider gassing up during the day since, around the holidays, they are havens for people hitting you up for money, some who do not have good intentions.

It’s nice to share the holiday cheer with the less fortunate. If you are the type of person who does dole out a few bucks to the people that seem to be standing on every corner, use caution.  Consider keeping a small stash or $5 or $1 bills that you use just for this purpose so that you do not have to take our wallet or dig in your purse and possibly have it snatched.

Better yet, donate to a charity so that you know exactly where the money is going.

Keep your car windows up and doors locked.  It’s not uncommon during the holiday season that people will knock on your windows after you get into your car in an attempt to get you out of your car.  Sometimes they will even flash a $5 or $20 bill telling you through the window that you dropped it.  This is usually, although not always, a ruse to get you out of your car.

Spending some time about your personal safety and using these holiday safety tips can help reduce your chances of becoming a victim of crime.

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