Black Friday Safety: 14 Tips for Safe Shopping

Following Black Friday safety tips can help you avoid shopping scams, personal injuries and costly accidents. While Black Friday can offer incredible deals around Thanksgiving, shopping may also leave you vulnerable to car break-ins or accidents in a crowded parking lot. Even if you primarily shop online, watch out for internet scams and identity theft.

Black Friday safety tips include staying alert in crowded stores and parking lots, protecting your belongings and avoiding suspicious online shopping deals.

Keep reading to learn Black Friday safety tips that can help you enjoy a safer shopping experience and kick off your holiday season with confidence.

On This Page

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  What Are the Most Important Black Friday Safety Tips?

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  What Are the Biggest Safety Risks on Black Friday?

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  9 Black Friday Safety Tips for In-Store Shopping

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  5 Black Friday Safety Tips for Online Shopping

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  How Can You Spot and Avoid Black Friday Scams?

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  What Should You Do After a Black Friday Scam or Theft?

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  Does Insurance Cover Black Friday Theft or Accidents?

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  Black Friday Safety at a Glance

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  How To Ensure You’re Covered for Black Friday

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  Frequently Asked Questions

What Are the Most Important Black Friday Safety Tips?

Some essential Black Friday safety tips to follow while shopping in brick-and-mortar stores, driving in your car and shopping online include the following:^[1]

What Are the Biggest Safety Risks on Black Friday?

Black Friday safety risks you should be aware of include:

9 Black Friday Safety Tips for In-Store Shopping

Follow these Black Friday safety tips to help protect yourself from injury, theft and other risks while shopping in stores.

1. Get the Right Insurance Coverage for Black Friday

If you're eyeing large or high-value purchases, understand that your homeowners or renters insurance — as well as your personal property coverage — may include limits on certain items. For example, insurance companies often place sublimits on jewelry and furs. You may need to add scheduled property coverage to your homeowners or renters policy for additional protection if they’re stolen or damaged by a covered loss.

It’s also worth reviewing your car insurance, especially if you’re visiting multiple stores, since busy parking lots increase the risk of accidents. Collision insurance covers repairs to your car after a car accident, while comprehensive insurance covers you if your car is broken into, vandalized or stolen.

Comprehensive insurance does not cover personal items stolen from inside your car. Instead, your homeowners or renters insurance typically covers those items, often limited to a percentage of your personal property coverage.

2. Monitor Your Credit Cards and Bank Accounts After Use

After the Black Friday shopping rush, keep a close eye on your financial statements. Unauthorized charges or suspicious activity can easily go unnoticed among legitimate purchases. Check your credit card and bank account statements regularly to spot and report discrepancies quickly.

Try to carry only one credit card while shopping. If your wallet is stolen, it’s much easier to cancel a single card than several.

3. Avoid Keeping Valuables in Your Vehicle for Extended Periods

During Black Friday, thieves often look for easy targets, and a car filled with shopping bags can be an appealing opportunity. Leaving valuables in your vehicle — even if hidden from view — increases your risk of a break-in.^[2] If you must store purchases in your car, do so only temporarily.

Thieves targeting parking lots often look for cars parked for long periods, especially in shopping centers where owners are unlikely to return soon, giving criminals time to break in unnoticed. In the middle of your shopping trip, consider moving your car to a different parking spot to make it appear that you’ve left the area.

4. Lock Your Vehicle

It might seem like common sense, but it's easy to overlook basic safety steps in the rush of Black Friday shopping — always make sure your vehicle is locked. An unlocked car is an open invitation for opportunistic thieves to take what’s inside or even steal your vehicle entirely, especially on a day when many shoppers are distracted by deals and crowds.

5. Be Wary of Reckless Drivers in Parking Lots

Black Friday often brings impatient and distracted drivers. Parking lots become hectic, with cars circling for spots and pedestrians everywhere — a perfect setup for fender benders or a distracted driver striking someone.

Stay alert for vehicles speeding, failing to yield to pedestrians or making sudden turns without signaling. When walking, make eye contact with drivers to ensure they see you, and always use caution when crossing the street, even if no cars appear to be approaching.

6. Park in a Well-Lit Area

If you're shopping early in the morning or late at night, darkness can give criminals cover to break into your car. Whenever possible, park in a well-lit area close to store entrances. Added visibility helps deter thieves and makes it safer when you return to your car.

7. Avoid ATMs

Carrying large amounts of cash can make you a target, so it’s best to avoid ATMs on Black Friday, as thieves may monitor machines near shopping centers. If you need to withdraw money, do so in a well-lit, high-traffic area, and be discreet.

Instead of carrying cash, consider using a credit card, which offers stronger security features and consumer protections than cash or debit cards.

8. Shop at Retail Stores With Security Present

Stores that prioritize security typically provide a safer shopping experience. Look for retailers with visible security guards, attentive staff members and surveillance cameras. Their presence helps deter potential criminals and adds an extra layer of safety for Black Friday shoppers.

9. Limit the Number of Shopping Bags You Carry

Carrying too many shopping bags can make you look like an easy target. It can also restrict movement, making it harder to react quickly in an emergency. Try consolidating your purchases into fewer bags or taking them home before continuing your shopping trip. If you must leave purchases in your vehicle temporarily, store them out of sight in a locked trunk.

5 Black Friday Safety Tips for Online Shopping

Shopping online can help you avoid Black Friday traffic and crowds, but it still comes with unique cybersecurity risks. Below are a few online Black Friday safety tips to help protect your personal and financial information while shopping.

1. Ensure the Website You’re Shopping on Is Secure

Before making online purchases on Black Friday, shop only on secure websites. Scammers may launch phishing scams by sending realistic-looking emails with links to fake web pages — sometimes impersonating legitimate retailers — to trick shoppers into sharing personal or financial information.

Before entering sensitive information, check that the website uses HTTPS, indicating an encrypted connection. However, HTTPS alone doesn't guarantee a website is legitimate, so verify the retailer's web address and avoid links from suspicious emails or messages.

2. Shop Familiar Brands

Sticking to well-known, trusted brands can reduce the risk of scams or counterfeit products. These retailers usually have stronger security measures in place to protect customer data.

While shopping with new or unfamiliar online retailers that offer tempting Black Friday deals may be appealing, always exercise caution. If you're considering a purchase from a lesser-known site, research the company first — read reviews, check customer feedback and make sure clear contact information is available.

3. Avoid Deals That Seem Too Good To Be True

Black Friday is famous for deep discounts, but it's also a prime opportunity for scammers to lure shoppers with offers that seem too good to be true. If a deal looks unrealistically low or much cheaper than what other retailers advertise, treat it as a red flag.

Always approach too-good-to-be-true promotions with caution, and verify the retailer and offer before buying. A quick online search or a review of customer reviews can help confirm whether a site is legitimate.

4. Shop With One Credit Card

Using a single credit card for all your online Black Friday purchases can be a smart move. It makes it easier to monitor for unauthorized transactions and limits potential exposure if your card information is compromised. Choose a card with strong fraud protection features, and review your statements regularly. If you notice any unfamiliar charges, report them to your card issuer immediately.

5. Buy Identity Theft Protection

Safeguarding personal and financial information is crucial in today's online shopping environment — especially during events like Black Friday and Cyber Monday. In 2025, there were more than 1.5 million estimated identity theft cases in the U.S.^[3]

Identity theft protection services offer another layer of security by monitoring databases and alerting you to suspicious activity on your financial accounts. Many insurance companies offer these services as add-ons to homeowners or renters policies. Some banks and credit card issuers also provide identity protection — often at a discount or as a complimentary benefit.

How Can You Spot and Avoid Black Friday Scams?

Here are a few tips on spotting Black Friday scams and how to avoid them:^[4]

• Websites that don’t utilize “https://” may be insecure or even illegitimate. Sticking to reputable retailer websites can help you avoid accidentally giving away your credit card information.
• Links that ask you to verify your account while shopping could lead to fake websites designed to steal your information. Never click on suspicious links that appear in messages, emails or AI chatbots, and instead log in directly through a store’s website or contact their customer support.
• Scammers may present deals and coupons that redirect you to malicious websites. Be wary of deals that appear outside a trusted website and of savings that seem too good to be true, as these could be signs of a scam.
• If you receive an email or text about a purchase or order you never made, it could be a scam trying to steal your information. Emails with misspellings or urgent language may be a scam, so verify by contacting your bank to confirm whether the charge is legitimate.
• Watch for delivery notifications for items you never ordered. Don’t click on any links, and ensure you save any legitimate order confirmation emails to double-check you didn’t forget about an order.

What Should You Do After a Black Friday Scam or Theft?

Scams are incredibly common around Black Friday, with roughly 37% of U.S. shoppers impacted by a scam during holiday shopping.^[5] If you are impacted by a scam while Black Friday shopping, consider the following steps:^[6]

1. Report the scam to your bank or payment app immediately
2. Ask your bank or payment app to refund the money after explaining you were scammed
3. If you paid using a credit card, you can dispute the charge as a scam
4. Report identity theft to IdentityTheft.gov and create a customized recovery plan
5. Create new account information if any accounts were compromised
6. Update your computer’s security software if a scammer gained access to your PC
7. Report scammers to the Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov

If your car is broken into and items are stolen while you’re out Black Friday shopping, take the following steps to help recover from your losses:^[7]

1. File a police report
2. Place a fraud alert on your credit report in case the thief gained access to any of your personal information
3. Freeze accounts if your debit or credit cards were stolen
4. Consider filing a homeowners or renters insurance claim to recover the cost of stolen items
5. Consider filing a comprehensive car insurance claim if the car was damaged by the break-in

Does Insurance Cover Black Friday Theft or Accidents?

Insurance may cover Black Friday theft or accidents depending on your policy and the circumstances. Auto liability insurance generally covers qualifying injuries or property damage you cause to others, while collision insurance can help pay for damage to your own vehicle after a covered collision. Homeowners or renters insurance may cover personal belongings stolen from your car, subject to applicable limits, deductibles and exclusions.

Black Friday Safety at a Glance

Below, we’ll cover the essential information you should know about Black Friday safety:

• Black Friday safety is essential to protect yourself from online scams and to avoid unnecessary accidents while shopping in person.
• While car insurance may cover you if you get into an accident in a busy parking lot while Black Friday shopping, you should drive cautiously to avoid an unnecessary claim.
• You may need physical damage protection to cover damage to your vehicle if you get into an accident.
• Be wary of online deals that appear too good to be true or come from suspicious-looking sources, as these may be scams.
• If you fall victim to a scam, report it to your bank or payment app immediately, explain the situation and then request a refund.

How To Ensure You’re Covered for Black Friday

To ensure you’re covered for Black Friday, you should review your insurance coverage. While you likely have a minimum amount of car insurance, that may not be enough to protect you if you get into a costly accident. Homeowners insurance may cover items stolen from your car, but off-premises coverage may be less than you expect, so it’s essential to check your coverage limits. You may also want to consider identity theft insurance to cover you if you fall victim to online scams.