How to Reduce Locker Room Theft
Whether you’re at the gym, school, or your place of employment, locker room lockers are a convenient way to keep your belongings safe. However, when thieves target those locker rooms, it puts your personal property at risk.
Below are ways that you can reduce locker room theft whether you’re a member using the locker room or a facility manager.
How Can Members Reduce Locker Room Theft?
While lots of people use lockers in their daily lives – workers, students, athletes – we’ll use the term member to refer to anyone who uses a locker. For members to reduce locker room theft, there are certain precautions that should be taken.
- Leave valuables at home. If possible, don’t store valuables in your locker. Thieves who continuously come up empty handed when breaking into lockers are likely to turn their attention somewhere else. However, we understand that sometimes it’s unavoidable to store valuables inside the locker.
- Invest in a quality lock. A cheap lock that’s easily cut, picked, or otherwise compromised can be tempting to thieves looking for an easy target. Instead, purchase a heavy-duty lock from a quality manufacturer.
- Choose a locker in a visible area. Although the entire locker room should feel like a safe place, based on its design, there may be some areas that are more prone to criminal activity. The back corners, for example, could provide ample coverage for a thief to feel concealed enough to attempt breaking into a locker. Chose a locker that’s in the open and next to other lockers in use.
How Can Managers Reduce Locker Room Theft?
As helpful as it is to have your members working to reduce locker room theft, their efforts may be futile if not backed up by the facility administrators.
As the managers of a locker room or a building which houses a locker room, it’s your responsibility to take actionable steps toward deterring theft. Here’s what you can do:
- Know who’s in your facility. One way to do this is by requiring membership or photo ID cards. This gives you a way to monitor who’s in the building when the thefts occur. You can also require nonmembers to provide identification and sign in/out.
- Monitor the locker room areas. If you can, keep a staff member nearby the locker room entrance to monitor people coming in and out. Train staff members on how to politely approach a suspicious person. Conduct walkthroughs at irregular times throughout the day.
- Keep lockers in good condition. Damaged lockers can be easily broken into. Not to mention, a locker room that’s in poor condition can send a message to would-be criminals that building officials don’t care. If your lockers need repairs, consider replacing them with highly durable HDPE lockers.
In addition to being resistant to rust and dents, lockers made from HDPE plastic lockers are extremely strong and effective at deterring would-be thieves.
Download our FREE Locker Replacement Checklist, which helps facility managers and administrators ensure that the condition of your lockers are safe and satisfactory.