After a break-in
Burglary repair in Orihuela Costa: secure it first, upgrade it next
First, a door that locks again so you can sleep in the house tonight or leave it safely. Then, once the report is made and the insurer has seen it, a door that is harder to force than the one they got through.
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- Report first, repair second
- Invoice for your insurer
- Price agreed before work starts
The first hour
In this order, before anything else
- If anyone may still be inside, step away and ring 112.
- Do not go in, tidy up or touch the lock until it has been seen.
- Photograph the door, the lock and anything damaged, for your insurer.
- Report it. Then ring us to make the door lock again.
The Guardia Civil post that covers Orihuela Costa is in Pilar de la Horadada, not on the coast itself, and residents have said publicly that reporting can mean waiting, and that interpreters are not always available. The guide on what to do after a break-in when the police post is up the road goes through it step by step.
Tonight
Making a forced door lock again
A door that has been forced usually has a snapped or drilled cylinder, a bent keep or a split frame. The first visit replaces the cylinder, refits or reinforces the keep and makes the door close and lock, even if the frame needs a carpenter later. A forced slider or glazed porch gets the same treatment: locked tonight, improved properly afterwards, as described on porch and terrace door locks.
If the house is a second home and you are abroad, the work can be done with a neighbour or key holder present, with photos sent to you. That is explained on looking after an empty house.
Afterwards
A security upgrade that fits the house
Once the insurer has seen the damage, the door can be made harder to open than it was. What makes sense depends on how they got in, and on the house.
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High-security cylinders
Resistant to snapping, bumping and drilling, sized so nothing stands proud of the handle plate.
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A stronger keep and frame
Many doors give way at the frame, not the lock. A reinforced keep spreads the force.
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A second locking point
On sliders and porch doors, a keyed lock low on the door makes lifting it off the track far harder.
Ordinary cylinder replacement without the break-in is covered on a lock change. To arrange the first visit, ring or use the contact page.
The visits
From the report to a stronger door
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The report is made
The Guardia Civil has seen the door, or told you it will not need to.
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The door is secured
The price is agreed first; then the door is made to close and lock that day.
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The insurer is sent the invoice
With the damage and the work described.
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The door is upgraded
A second visit, booked for a day that suits you, if you decide on one.
Questions
What people ask once the door has been forced
Should I tidy up or fix the door before the Guardia Civil comes?
No. Leave the door, the lock and the room as you found them until it has been seen or you have been told it will not be. Take photos for your insurer meanwhile.
They came in through the slider, not the front door.
That is common in ground-floor homes with a terrace. A forced slider is made to lock again first, and then given a better lock or a second locking point.
Will my insurer pay for the locksmith?
Many home policies cover emergency lock repairs after a burglary, but terms vary. The invoice describes the damage and the work, and can be written up so your insurer understands it.
What does a high-security cylinder add?
Resistance to the methods used to open ordinary cylinders quickly: snapping, bumping and drilling. It is only as good as the door it sits in, so the door and frame are looked at as well.
Nothing was taken, but the lock has scratches round it.
Someone may have tried and given up. Report it anyway, and have the cylinder checked: a damaged cylinder can fail later, and the next attempt may be at a better time for them.
Along the same coast
What people usually need next
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Repairing the lock you have
Fresh euro cylinders, snap-resistant upgrades, worn multipoint gearboxes and seized garden gate locks, on a date you choose.
Lock change & repair -
Aluminium door repairs
Sliding terrace doors that will not latch, glazed porch enclosures, solarium doors and uPVC doors that have dropped out of line.
Aluminium & uPVC doors -
Second home lock work
For owners who spend months in the UK or elsewhere: locks checked before you fly, access arranged for a trusted person, a door secured while you are away.
Second homes
A door that was forced today?
Report it, photograph it, then ring to have it locking again.
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