Teens left the back door wide open all night!

[TheDoorsOpen]

Came down at 8am to find the dog was in the living room with the light on and door not shut, she's always locked in the room.

Thought it was unusually cold downstairs and go to the kitchen to find the back door wide open!

Ran upstairs to check my younger 2 were in bed, they're high-school age but still panicked.

DH had locked up at about 10pm, took dog out, put her to bed.

The teens (17 and 19) are up and down all night and I suspect let the dog out again.

I'm absolutely livid. We live in a densely populated terraced street. We could easily have been robbed or bloody murdered in our beds (a little dramatic, I know)

How the fuck do you just wander off to bed in the middle of the night without shutting the door??

I'm seriously pissed off at them and both are denying it was them.

I have chronic anxiety/OCD and I can just see this is going to be my new thing to lay in bed worrying about now.

It’s a general scatty carelessness though that can be hard to live with if you’re not like that. If I can absolutely see this being an issue with my 8yo is older. She constantly leaves the freezer open. I thought it was an age thing but her 5 year old sister has no problems so it is a personality thing of just being a bit slapdash.

locking up properly is just an important part of being a responsible. If they are not yet mature enough then the adults in the house have to stay up to do it or change the rules that once a door has been locked it’s not messed with that evening.

It may well lead to someone walking in, in a high crime area.

OK - just read your update about where you live and I wouldn't be happy either. But it's happened and all you can do now is clearly point out the dangers to the rest of your family .

Could the dog have got out with the door open? Would that be the tack to take with them, that they need to ensure the door is closed (and locked) to prevent the dog getting out. Even if your back garden/yard is enclosed, people like to steal dogs

ODFOD.

Most crime is opportunistic and unfortunately there are plenty of examples of opportunistic rapists and violent thugs who have struck based on easy access (including open windows at night, let alone doors). Have a chat with a criminal barrister or judge if you'd like stories to put basis on your chest.

Is it the most likely outcome of leaving a door open overnight? No. Would you have to be very unlucky for it to be both a night and place where one of these people was on the prowl? Yes. But "what are the chances" is scant comfort if a family member is unlucky enough to suffer such brutality because you have casually upped the risk factor for them without their knowledge.

OP, you have every reason to be cross and rake them over the coals for this, OCD or not. It's a perfectly normal reaction.

If someone opened th back gate yes, it does have a small lock on it but twice it's been prized off.

She's a tiny Yorkshire terrier so not much of a guard dog 😅

But she would bark if she saw someone I think

I agree, it's a real risk. It wasn't so long ago I found laptops squirrelled under my garden hedge. Turned out they were part of a haul from several burglaries the night before and the scummy thief had gotten into terrace houses simply by trying doors in the early hours, hitting the jackpot with a few unlocked doors.

Police reckoned he probably tried my door too before hiding some of his haul in the garden and planning to come back for it.

You don't have to live in the Bronk to be at risk from opportunistic intruders these days. I wonder where those playing it down as no big deal live, rural villages back in the 1920s?

Hope you're ok OP and your kids have learnt their lesson.

Yes, sorry to say, that's the way it is in many areas these days, and the socials can facilitate this by giving others quick info.
But I get that you're upset, I would be too, but what can you do?

Your family knows what it's like in your area, and I'm sure they didn't leave the door open intentionally, so all you can do is impress on them how upset you are, and leave a reminder if you think it'll help, near the door knob or near the kettle or the fridge door, where ever you think it will get seen!

Saying exactly this to them and explain the terrible consequences this action could have seems perfectly reasonable to me, I'm sure they will apologise and understand how serious this could have been. And hopefully be very very careful moving forwards.

Bloody hell, I would be annoyed as well.

If you put your dh left the door open and you felt like a vulnerable female you would have a man bashing thread, agreeing with you but since you've mentioned ocd / anxiety and teens - you will get weird responses

No shit, Sherlock.

@TheDoorsOpen I would be livid as well. DH kept leaving our car unlocked overnight and I had to remind him firmly that he had no right to be so cavalier about our most expensive possession after the house. Leaving doors open in a high crime area is being cavalier about safety and you have every right to be upset, OCD or no OCD.

I'd be just as concerned about why they are denying it. If my teenagers did this they would definitely own up. Could they have opened the back door for a reason other that letting the dog out?

Given one of them is 19, I'm sure they know.

So nothing like the OPs situation then?

I think what's happened is 2 or 3 of them have been congregating in the kitchen, making a snack, getting a drink as they often do and the dogs been let out then they've all sort of done their own thing, gone in living room or toilet or the 2nd lounge and one by one gone upstairs and nobody has realised they're the last ones down and needed to lock up.

So I don't think anyone is lying outright but all do t think it was them iykwim?

They realise the risk and I'm hopeful they won't do it again but it was scary to find the door open like that.

If there was a door alarm that went off after 10 mins of the door being open after 9pm that would be great 🤣

That would drive me mad too. I live somewhere rough so am obsessive about security.

OP I get it. My kids went through a phase of leaving back and front doors open, keys in the lock in the front door, etc. Apart from the safety aspect, it’s beyond annoying that they can’t focus for thirty seconds to just close the thing they opened.

I don't think you're overreacting, I would be really annoyed.

My ex used to secretly drink excessively when DS were babies/toddlers. I'd sometimes wake up in the middle of the night and find the lights on downstairs, the front door wide open and him asleep on the sofa. Often the car was unlocked too, which I later realised was where he hid his alcohol. I even found the gas hob left on sometimes after he'd cooked something.

I was very annoyed and upset and it made me feel very vulnerable, especially with my very young DS asleep in the house. Despite telling him how I felt, he continued to do it, or even told me I was crazy for being so concerned.

One of the reasons he is now an ex. Thankfully I'm now married to a much more considerate and responsible DH.

Are they the same with cupboard doors? Sometimes feels like I live with a bunch of poltergeist 🤣

I guess apart from being robbed, your insurance company wouldn't cover any claim because the door wasn't shut and locked. Any excuse not to pay out, they'll find one.

I don't have any insurance 😕

I should probably get some though.

My son used to left the front door key at the door while I was at work. The amount of anxiety whenever he came home was unbelievable. My house has been broken into once - I'll never forget how distressed I felt and my first thought was actually to move out asap.

That's why I got Ring on my front and back door, front and back outdoor cameras plus door sensors so that I will be alerted on the app.

However, I've realised that amount of stress is really unhealthy, so my home insurance is in place to cover the event should someone break in.

Is not so much the value of the stuff that was taken. My house is my sanctuary and to have someone unauthorised violated the space is tantamount to bodily harm.

No buildings insurance? Or contents insurance? Why? 😬

Pretty sure it is NOT typical teenage behaviour. Why do some posters feel the need to make excuses for them?

I'd be more upset that the teenagers are denying it instead of pologising and saying they'll be more careful.