Think plumber has stolen knickers

[Washingbasketchair]

WWYD in this situation.

I am having my boiler replaced. A three day job. I have used the plumber before and he seems lovely, is recommended by others too.
He was here yesterday whilst I was at work for most of the day and he was alone in the house. He is coming back today.

I have just come out of the shower to get dressed, and can’t find the knickers I planned to wear today. They are a specific pair that I wear with the dress I will wear today.
The matching bra is there. And the knickers were there the other day. I wore them last week, and remember putting them back when I put the washing away. I have checked the dirty and clean laundry and the washing machine and they are not there.

I know it’s ridiculous but my mind has now moved to the possibility that someone has taken them, and the plumber is the obvious suspect. I have zero evidence apart from the missing knickers. But the thought is obviously sickening as is the thought of him rifling through the drawer (which doesn’t just have underwear in it 😬).

WWYD? Am I being mad? I can’t lock the door to the room or put a camera in there in the 45 mins between now and when he is arriving. I can’t confront him with no evidence. I can’t stop him from coming. Argh! They are nowhere to be seen and a man has had access to my house alone.

Gees, misplaced knickers and you jump to the conclusion the plumber has them without any evidence of it at all, just because you think you remember putting them back in the drawer.
Have you pulled your drawers out to check they haven’t dropped down the back? Checked they aren’t stuck to another item of clothing? Socks and underwear are forever disappearing in our house, proven by the amount of single socks we own. Nobody steals them!

Thanks everyone. To answer various questions:

• Yes I thoroughly checked for them, because they are a specific pair I wanted to wear today, without which I have had to wear a different dress. (and different bra obviously). They are definitely not behind the drawer, in the drawer below, in the DCs’ drawers etc. I am also pretty sure I remember putting them back at the weekend after washing them.
• I haven’t jumped to a conclusion. I’ve jumped to a suspicion! As I’ve said, beyond the missing knickers I have no evidence.
• The plumber is reputable, Gas Safe certified (or whatever the term is). Also on Checkatrade, and I’ve used him before.
• Not sure why it’s taking three days. They aren’t going to be full days, apparently. But his quote was only £50 more than the other guy I asked, so he got the job cos he was good before.

Anyway, he’s here now and I am about to go to work. I have taken a photo of the drawer, and moved some things out. I have left it messy on purpose but in a specific order that I took the photo of. Let’s see…

When I was younger I suspected my mums cleaner of moving my contraceptive pills from my bedside drawers. I left a note in the drawer stating that I knew she’d taken the pills and to return them . I said if she didn’t I’d tell my mum ( who knew about the contraception) and she’d get the sack. The pills were returned the next day. I still told my mum , she still got the sack!
Id do similar in your situation. Leave a note in the drawer telling him that you have a hidden camera and will send to police if knickers not returned . If he hasn’t got them no harm done !

You really shouldn’t let some random bloke be in your house unsupervised. He could be anyone and be doing anything, you honestly don’t know him well enough. You can’t do anything about it now other than to not leave him alone in your house again. To me that is utter madness.

Can you get someone to be in your home? I would never give a stranger unfettered access to my home for 3 days. Or even a tradesman I knew, to be honest. It's asking for trouble.

I like the idea of this in theory but it scares me. The type of man who steals knickers may well be the type of man who gets angry and violent towards women so I’m not going to take that chance, no matter how much I’d like to in theory. Thanks though (and well done re your pills! Wonder why she stole them…?)

I know. It’s not ideal. But I need the boiler fixed, and the kids are with their dad this week so it was the easiest week. Tomorrow I am WFH but not today or yesterday.

I understand. Maybe you could pretend someone was popping in so he doesn’t get himself too comfortable?

Missing the point, but why can you only wear that dress with those knickers?

In different properties we have replaced 2 boilers. 3/4 days is not unusual to take a boiler put a new one in out changing a number of pipes, adapting etc.

My thoughts are that he would surely wait until the final day to steal knickers because you might notice before that. And I would’ve thought pervs who steal pants would want dirty ones? It was a good idea to take a photo of the drawer, hopefully it’s exactly as you left it when you home and the knickers will turn up somewhere.

Re: three days for a boiler. Mine was replaced last year in one day because I had two fitters and an electrician in at once. I used to date a boiler fitter and it would take several days for a big house, if pipes needed moving, radiators needed replacing or he was on his own (usually in summer as that’s when everyone wants their boiler done). So I don’t think it’s a suspicious amount of time

I'd be more concerned about why he's quoted 3 days to change a boiler - unless it is being relocated to another part of the house.

We've been in our house for nearly 40 years and had several new boilers - none of them took more than a day to install.

If he doesn't pass the trap that you have set today, (thus confirming he took the fist pair) I wouldn't say anything but I would pay him £30 less (or whatever they cost) from the total invoice and inform him that was the value of the underwear he took. Don't expand further, he doesn't know if you've got hidden cameras etc for proof and hopefully you'll never have to see him again and he will probably have the fear of gossip and reputation to never do it again.

Also, the echo others.... a boiler should only take a day, unless of course he already had jobs booked in, and he's fitting you in....

Wow!

Please do the world a favour a join the Police. You'd make a brilliant detective!

First thing you come up with is the Plumber must have done it because all men are perverts and manual workers clearly fall even lower on your scale of judgment.

The only weird, deviant person involved here is you OP. What an utterly sick, twisted, disgusting conclusion to come to. And shame on all the posters agreeing with you.

We had a new boiler fitted years ago and it took around three days as he had to take down the old tank from the loft ( which was tricky) and fit a new one in the airing cupboard as well as the new boiler. I can remember it taking more than a few days , but he was on his own.
As for the underwear stealing , some great ideas on here and if he is doing this it’s so horrible.
I hope you can trap him somehow.

What?

I have plenty of circumstantial evidence, like the fact that there were knickers there, then he was there alone, now there are no knickers there. Thus I think it’s reasonable to suspect him.

What I don’t have is physical evidence.

The fact that he’s a man does indeed make me more suspicious than if it was a woman, given the missing pants. Obviously I didn’t suspect him before they went missing. The fact that he’s a tradesman has nothing to do with it at all! What a strange chip you have on your shoulder.

This.

Yabu. They are probably inside another item of clothing.

This is ridiculous.
The knickers have probably got lost somewhere. Memories are not always reliable, especially something as mundane as when you last saw a particular pair of knickers.

Reminds me of when someone on our corridor at university accused the cleaner of stealing her "special going out top". There was an investigation and all sorts, don't know what came of that but the cleaner ended up being moved to another corridor. It later transpired that the top had fallen off a hanger in the wardrobe and was hidden in a pile of junk the student had there. She did at least admit it to us and was very embarrassed about it. She only found the top several weeks later when packing to go home for the holidays.

If he’s facing trial by Mumsnet, I fear it’s an open and shut case.

Did he use the toilet? That would be an aggravating factor.

I'd put a mousetrap in my drawer if this happened to me.

Wonder if he's the same plumber who rooted through an OP's wardrobe a while back and took a roll of toilet paper out of there?

Toilet paper in a wardrobe?

Are we having another f4j invasion? Not all men are perverts, but most perverts are men..Sorry chisel dick.