Is this a false widow??

[Nngold]

Hiya, found these spiders outside my landing window and I have a huge phobia. They are gone now sod knows where but my partner opened the upstairs windows earlier (I have shut them all) and am now panicking. I also have a 2 year old so I’m petrified if it is he will get bitten!
sorry to sound dramatic, but I really am so scared of them. I’ve sprayed peppermint around the frames just now but sod knows where the sods have gone! Not sure I’ll sleep tonight lol

If they’re not coming up the best quality I could zoom in but I really would rather now lol

Hard to tell for sure from the photos. We have a lot of them in our house, door and window frames seem to be their favourite place, I have never been bitten by one and I even removed one from the bath with my hands last week. They don’t tend to bite unless they feel threatened (a bit like a bee).

Hard to tell from photos. I was bitten by a false widow which was in my bed. Ended up on antibiotics but was absolutely fine. The bite wasn't as bad as a wasp sting, and they aren't dangerous. I still love spiders 😊

I think I can see the white and black markings on this one.
@Lovemusic33 oh you’re brave, I think I’d die on the spot. do you have kids? I’m more worried if he was to get bit!

This one I couldn’t see the outside off but it was fairly big maybe the length of my finger. If my partner was home I would of had him deal with them but I popped out for an hour come back and they had gone before he got home

Yes it does look like a steatoda nobilis (noble false widow). They do bite but it's not common. I was only bitten because it was in my bed and I must've rolled into it. Just leave it where it is.

@MAREMCKENNA they have disappeared, hopefully not into the house. Most likely the soffit above the window! I’m concerned there was 3 of them all on one window!

They do look like them though there are a couple of similar species. I used to be scared of them but I learnt about them (joys of being a nerd) and now respect them. We have had them in the house for years, my dc are older now but I just taught them not to touch them, dd1 is now 19 and loves spiders, sometimes she removed house spiders for me as these still scare me a little.
I actually had one living in the bathroom during lockdown and I used to talk to him whilst having a bath.

As long as they are outside I wouldn’t worry too much, I don’t find many indoors during the summer, they tend to try and move in when the weather gets cold.

You can guarantee there's usually a false widow somewhere nearby, you just happened to see this one! Try not to worry. Much more likely to be stung by a wasp!

thank you both, I’ve only heard the bad things about false windows so automatically panicked! Especially having a young child, I have anxiety as it is with him getting hurt so the thought of him getting bit by one!
praying they won’t come in but I will probably go and get some more peppermint oil tomorrow & put a diffuser on the windows so I can actually open them! Going to be a long hot night since I’m not opening them😂

Thinking about it, around a month or so ago we had a nest hatch in our bathroom. They were absoloutely tiny but everywhere and they were red! Partner thought maybe money spiders and we did hoover any we saw up but could this have been false widows?
never found the mum so can’t be sure!

I think you need to stop worrying about this. The average house has 40-100 spiders in it in peak spider season. They aren't going to kill you or your children.

It’s hard to tell but they could be. But the best thing to remember is that despite the term ‘widow’ in their name, they are from an entirely different genus than the true widow. And even the true widows are very reluctant to bite. False windows belong to the Steadota genus and true windows belong to the Latrodectus genus. All spiders are venomous, but there are very very few dangerous spiders. We don’t have any dangerous spiders here in the UK. They are just the friendly neighbourhood fly control!

Oh okay thank you for your replies. I am probably over reacting but I have a huge phobia!
does anyone have anymore tips to prevent them coming in the house?

Looks like one. They’re quite sweet. Don’t bother them and they won’t bother you.

Yeah, first picture in comment section is a false widow. Please don't be any more scared of them than you are of any other spiders. The media caused such a daft frenzy, they're harmless unless you happen to be allergic to them, which is extremely unlikely. They don't like peppermint, so you could rub some essential oil around the area to prevent entry.

"I think you need to stop worrying about this. The average house has 40-100 spiders in it in peak spider season. They aren't going to kill you or your children"

40 - 100... WHAT?!