Shared front door

[Fabpinky]

Who is BU?

I’ve been in a silent battle for nearly 3 years now and I’m wondering who everyone thinks is being unreasonable.

Person A - Rents an office/shop that has a flat above it

Person B - Rents the flat about A’s office/shop

The silent war is over the shared front door. It goes as follows: shared front door which then leads to a tiny square with door to the office on the left, door to the flat in front.

Person A wants the shared front door locked at all times when they are not in the office e.g evenings and weekends.

Person B doesn’t want the shared front door locked at all because they say it’s a fire hazard, for example if there is a fire in the night and Person B tries to escape they won’t have their keys and would be stuck.

When discussed Person B suggested a key be permanently in the lock. Person A doesn’t want this as the door is glass panes and someone might smash to get the key.

Person B has also said that in the past if someone runs out of the flat without their keys and the front door is locked, they have been trapped in the tiny hallway until someone has been able to come and let them out.

Same landlord for both properties. He says no comment and to sort it between us.

So for the past 3 years Person A has been locking up when they leave, and Person B has been leaving it unlocked. This makes for an awkward relationship, but is probably what will continue to happen. Just curious to who is BU

Just use the Yale.

If business person is concerned for their office being vacant over the weekend then they need to reinforce their own internal door.

How about locking the door but having the key kept (or a spare key) on a hook ok the inside of the door at the top so it can be unlocked quite easily?

Most people will have some sort of Yale lock on their front door and I would think it would be rare to put a chub lock on as well.
the Yale lock secures the door but the door can still be opened without a key in the event of fire.

Crunchymum - that’s what we have. But Person A also wants it locked with a key.

Both office and flag then have Yale locks on their doors.

@crunchymum there are two updates saying there is a yale (latch) type lock.

As the door is locked automatically behind whoever leaves I can't really see Person A's issue. A is BU.

I am Person B and I’m glad that the majority of you agree with me.

Also it isn’t SO frustrating to run down the stairs when a take away arrives to find they’ve locked the shared door and have to run back up and find my keys.

Why not get A to put better lock or door to the shop/office, so if somebody does get into the street door they will be unable to get into the office

You can't lock a latch with a key?

It's a latch, there is nowhere for a key (only to open it from the outside?)

We don’t talk about anymore. Just a silent battle of locking and unlocking. Sometimes if I’m feeling petty I’ll lock it when I know they’re in the office so they can feel my frustration at it being locked when they try to get out.

Also the key lock is SO old and you’ve really got to get it in the right position to unlock the door. This adds to my frustration, I’ve been stuck in the small square for over 15 minutes trying to get out before

Crunchymum - we have a latch and a separate lock built into the actual door

I think the shop person is bu. A Yale lock is sufficient without locking it with a key as well.

However, they will probably just keep locking you in, could you get another key for the key lock cut and hang it just inside your own door so it's to hand for takeaway purposes?

Also the key lock is SO old and you’ve really got to get it in the right position to unlock the door. This adds to my frustration, I’ve been stuck in the small square for over 15 minutes trying to get out before

This makes Person A even more unreasonable. It's a fire risk on it's own.

X post, if it's that sticky could you get your landlord to remove or replace on fire hazard grounds? Tell them you don't mind there being a lock, but the current one isn't fit for purpose?

Stick a piece of chewing gum in the lock, do it from the outside, deny all knowledge.

Landlord should really sort a door that locks automatically. It does seem a hazard for the renter if they might get completely stuck in a corridor. If LL won't sort it I'd not keep it locked at all times office person can always ensure their door is very secure to prevent theft.

Landlord needs to replace the door if the lock is soo shit you have to faff around with it for 15 minutes, that would make me panic a wee bit.

CuthbertDibble - I like your thinking you devil

Shared door should be ok with just the one lock, not the extra, old lock locked as well. If person A was so worried, they should beef up the locks on their own internal office door. Your ability to get the fuck out takes precedence.

Although I don’t think YABU, we have 2 locks on our door for insurance purposes. A Yale and a dead lock. We lock it with the dead lock every night and keep our keys by the door. It is annoying when the doorbell goes and you’ve forgotten the doors locked but that’s life! I don’t think it’s a fire hazard so I don’t think you have a point in that regard. I do think you need the sticky lock replacing, that’s a fire hazard.

Hold on - so you're saying when person A goes into their office they don't lock the front door behind them? In which case they're fucking hypocrites!

I don't know if anyone is willing to throw some money at this problem but you could get a lock that only locks on the outside (so anyone inside can always open to the door if needed) and has a keypad so you can set a code to open it (so no need to remember a key).

The lock needs replaced as a matter of urgency so that you can open the door quickly.

Meanwhile, as pps have suggested, why don't you keep your key to the outside door on a hook just inside your door. Then you don't have to run back upstairs for it.

Why doesn't person B just hide a key somewhere in the landing? And not tell person A?

I don't understand how this is any different to any door in any home, ever. We have doors that lock with keys, we don't leave the keys in the locks overnight but we leave a key in a convenient place on the way to the door in case of a fire. Isn't that just the same?