AIBU to want the doors locked when I go to bed? Actually I want them locked all the time.

[BeautifulBlondePineapple]

DH has gone out for the evening but didn't want to take his keys.

I want to go to bed, but am uncomfortable at leaving the front door unlocked so he can get in later. Does that make me uptight? Would you feel the same or would you be happy to leave the front door completely unlocked for a short time at night?

He is very relaxed about this kind of thing, but I am getting a bit more uptight about it. I like the doors locked when I am in the house. I like a key left in the lock all the time so that we could get out if there was a fire (we only have mortice locks on the front & back doors). Am I being OTT?

[ILetHimKeep20Quid]

Yanbu

Whatever happened to that little girl?

[BackforGood]

Not sure why they would be in my hose rather than my house but hopefully you got the point

Not sure why that seems to have stunned you lessons ? I genuinely can't see why OP's dh can't take his keys with him

[lessonsintightropes]

Just thought it was quite a harsh response without enough info tbh, which is why I'd asked the question upthread about why he'd gone out without his keys... if my DH had a reasonable reason and I'd likely be up anyway, I wouldn't be that fussed about waiting up without locking up iyswim... and if he'd forgotten them by accident wouldn't expect him to go to a hotel, but to each their own.

[MrsDmitriTippensKrushnic]

I never lock my front door, but I have a Yale lock so you can't get in without a key anyway. I've never lived anywhere that hasn't had a lock like that, but I guess from these replies it's actually pretty common to have doors that have to be manually locked from the inside? I don't think I'd be comfortable going to sleep if some random person could just open my front door like that!

[VeryStressedMum]

I live in possibly the safest place on earth and I always lock the doors, I put the keys in the same place every single night, on the windowsill in the upstairs hall so I can get them on my way down the stairs. But tbh I'd rather take my chances with a fire than an intruder (hopefully only a theif!!) when I'm here on my own with the dcs.

[DontPanicMrMannering]

Reminds me of my friends uncle from Stornaway years ago.

He said (very shocked) they'd had a spate of cars being nicked but he'd solved the problem by taking his keys out. Said it so proudly like it was the most unusual idea ever made me want to live there.

Back to the subject op yanbu lock him out tell him to call you when he's back and sleep with your mobile.

[Chakkarollo]

it depends where you live firstly but i think you should have a hiding place outside for a key and you should keep it locked.I would not leave the key in the lock though as this is open to thieves getting it innit

[NadiaWadia]

I couldn't sleep knowing the doors were unlocked downstairs. I also feel more comfortable with the front door locked during the day, especially if I am at the back of the house. My DM and DF seem to leave theirs unlocked though, but I keep telling them off. You never know, any chancer could walk in. OK it is unlikely but it does happen.

During the summer, on a hot night one of DH's colleagues left a window open downstairs. He doesn't live in a dodgy area. Someone got in, took his car keys and car. And then his insurance wouldn't pay out because it wasn't forced entry. And that was only a window!

[CanucksoontobeinLondon]

YANBU. I'm not sure why your DH didn't want to take his keys, but it sounds like it should be a one-off occurrence if it's going to upset you this much. I would be very upset too. We don't live in a bad neighbourhood and I still keep the doors locked at all times. It's a good habit to have.

If your DH is reluctant to take his keys in future, point out to him that if a thief tried the front door handle and walked out with your DVD player or other expensive stuff, the insurance wouldn't pay out.

[RoadToTuapeka]

Yanbu at all! I have two front doors (a ventilation/screen door, and the main door, and even if I am home I keep one or the other locked, when I forget I usually remember while I am in the shower and has visions of someone trying the door and stealing off with the baby!

I wouldn't be able to sleep if I knew the door was unlocked!

[MidniteScribbler]

I don't worry too much about it here, I do tend to lock them, but if we don't it doesn't matter, but it's a big farm property. Moving soon back to suburbia and will have to get back in the habit of making sure everything is locked up. I certainly won't be going to bed without the doors locked.

[cookymonster]

YANBU. We live in a fairly quiet area but are very security conscious. I was burgled years ago and don't feel comfortable without locking the doors.

[MrsMook]

Our house is always locked. In our neighbourhood the most common crime is car key (and car!) theft.

A few years ago my friends were in the house waiting for the dad to come back from the pub with door unlocked. It wasn't the dad that walked in, it was a theiving piece of scum. He "only" got away with a handbag and laptop as he was disturbed, but that caused a massive amount of stress and inconvenience.

[CrohnicallyLurking]

I always keep my doors locked. The keys are kept near the door, always in the same place so in the event of a fire etc I would have to walk past to get to the door and could find them even in dark/smoke, but they are out of reach of the letterbox/wire trick.

I especially make sure that if I go out the back, the front door is locked. A woman I know once went out the back to hang washing out. When she came in the house, she disturbed a burglar- who stabbed her. Luckily she survived without any lasting (physical) damage.

Likewise I don't like having ground floor windows open except the kitchen which is too small for anyone to get in.

We also have a burglar alarm that is set at night as well, as when we are out the house. We used to have a dog and he was fantastic- one night he woke us barking, we heard a bang and looked out the window but couldn't see anything. In the morning we realised the back gate wasn't shut properly, someone had obviously managed to force it in the night but ran off because the dog barked.

So no, OP, to cut a long story short YANBU to want the doors locked before you go to bed!

[ChilledGhost]

YANBU we were burgled 2 years ago as my DW had accidentally forgot to lock the front door. Turned out an opportunist had walked down the street trying everyone's front door that night and ours was the only one not locked

[dashoflime]

"What you seriously never lock your door at night dash"

Never. If anyone is in the house, awake or not, the door is on the yale. Imagine..your house is filling up with acrid black smoke and you are looking for your keys. It doesn't bear thinking about.

I'm a bit surprised I seem to be on my own here. Is this my penisbeaker?

[CrohnicallyTired]

Ahh, if you have a Yale that is slightly different, if an opportunist walked down the street trying all the doors as in Ghost's example, the door wouldn't open. However, we don't have a Yale and the way our door is fitted we couldn't add one ourselves, so I'll stick with locking the door and putting my keys in the same place at night thanks.

[DisgraceToTheYChromosome]

Both doors locked at all times with keys inserted and turned. If someone's out the front door key comes out but that's it.

This is mainly because the village idiot has discovered that forced entry gets you sent down.

[MuffCakes]

I have a door that you need to use your key to get in but you can just open to get out no key needed. You can lock it from the inside but I don't see the point if you can't just walk in anyway.

[Iaintdunnuffink]

We have a Yale and still go burgled because we didn't lock it from the inside one night. I only found out because we were woken by a phone call at 8am. It was my bank saying my card had been found dumped in a near by street. They'd come in, grabbed anything with easy reach, and closed the door behind them.

[YouTheCat]

If doors aren't locked and you get burgled it invalidates your insurance.

[WillSingForCake]

Dash if the keys are in the lock or hanging next to the door you won't have to look for them. Don't forget your contents insurer won't pay-up if you get burgled when you've willingly left your door unlocked.

[Iaintdunnuffink]

The police told us that even with a Yale to lock the door from the inside way night. Also if you're popping out to use your keys to lock it fully.

[SpookedMackerel]

I've never lived in a house where it was possible to open the front door from the outside without a key. In fact, i don't know anyone who has a front door like that. I have locked myself out a we times because of this, but I still think it's a better system. What weird front doors everyone else on mumsnet seems to have!

[MuffCakes]

And me mackerel, I also never double lock it when going out I just shut the door behind me.