Is it Safe to Have Service Professionals in Your Home?
One common question you might ask when thinking of having workers come to you home is, “Is it safe?” Home visit safety is a concern for many people, especially when they are considering inviting a stranger into their home, someone who they may have never met.
For women this concern is often elevated, especially if they will be at home alone when the service professional visits. For example, if you are a stay-at-home mom and plan to have work done on your house, you may be more aware of home visit safety precautions than a single guy would be if he had a similar scheduled appointment with a service professional.
The questions surrounding home visit safety have likely increased, not just for women, but for everyone as the pandemic has taken over our lives. Now, not only do you have to trust your safety around service professionals, but you also have the concern of infection — adding a health safety related question to your potentially growing list of worries.
If you are planning to schedule a service professional for a home visit, most likely the visit will work out fine without any safety concerns being raised. Most people in the service industry are wonderful and kind. However, it is always a good idea to take precautions when you are meeting someone for the first time, especially if you are alone. Here are some tips:
1. Stay connected to friends and/or family members Staying connected throughout the visit with close friends or family can help ensure that if something unexpected happens, someone will know about it.
2. Keep valuable things out of sight — If you have valuables or family heirlooms in your home, it’s best to keep them out of site when you have any visitors, especially those who you don’t personally know.
3. Listen to your internal warning signals — If you aren’t feeling safe, find a way to get away from the situation by saying that something has come up, or another respectful way to ensure they leave your property.
4. Know your exits — Always be aware of the fastest escape routes in your home.
5. Keep a distance — Keep a distance between you and the people in your home.
The problem that many people have with inviting someone into their home is that they think the only way to find a service professional is through the yellow pages or a Google search. In these cases, you can’t easily check someone’s background or know they are who they say that they are. Rest assured! If you hire a service professional from the OneBook platform, know that your security is always a concern.
OneBook does detailed background checks for all of our service professionals, so not only do they have the background and skills to complete the job correctly and on-time, but you can also relax with the knowledge that we have done the due diligence to make sure that you remain safe with our service professionals.
Home Visit Safety During The Covid-19 Pandemic
The pandemic has made everyone more aware of germs. Cleaning has become a bigger industry as cleanliness has come into focus. It seems even more difficult to consider inviting a stranger into your space now during the pandemic than it ever did before. However, there are some simple precautions you can take to help prevent virus exposure.
According to the CDC, if you hire in-home services or repairs you should:
- Ask the service professional to wear a mask. And in most places this is mandatory anyway!
- You and anyone else in the home should wear masks. Recently, double-masking has become encouraged as a better way to prevent transmitting germs.
- Stay at least 6 feet from the service provider at all times and limit the interactions between the service provider and other people in the home, as well as with any pets.
- Minimize indoor conversations.
- Avoid physical greetings like hand shakes. How about trying one of those elbow bumps?
- Try to maximize ventilation inside your home (turn on the air conditioner or open windows).
- After the service is completed, clean and disinfect surfaces in your home that may have been touched by the service provider. There’s really no way to be too over-cautious here.
These precautions are especially important because researchers have determined that the virus is more likely to spread in tight, enclosed spaces. It is possible to stay safe during at-home visits if you take precautionary steps. However, it’s important to always weigh the need for the service against the potential transmission risk.
At OneBook, for as long as the pandemic remains a threat, we will guarantee that every hired service professional will come prepared with gloves and masks to keep you and your family safe.
Do you need to hire a service professional? Search for a pre-vetted professional on OneBook!
