To think a mad man could just walk into my house?

[reresres]

Bit of a silly worry but anyway ...just moved into a house through my local H/A
Found out in the last few years a few tenants have lived here.
Sat thinking after a tenant moves out they hand the keys back in.
What is stoping them (if they were crazy ) getting a key cut before they handed them back and potentially letting themselves in your house whenever they want.
I'm sat here rather paranoid now
Imagine if one was a serial killer

Oh, and even if your tenancy agreement says you're not allowed to, it's unenforceable. They can't evict you because you've changed the locks.

Oh c'mon everyone, the chances of this happening are minuscule!

@LittleKitty1985 it does happen. I let myself into my best friends house and found a strange man on her sofa. It turns out her LL had illegally evicted her whilst she was working away and moved his brother in. He'd wanted to sell but didn't want to go through the legal processes figuring she was 18 and probably wouldn't do a thing about it. She was fully paid up with rent.

Second time a friend of a previous tenant let themselves into my house. They didn't know they had moved over a year ago. (Close enough friends to have a key, not close enough to be told they'd moved?)

Now I always change the locks. Not worth the risk. And no, the LL doesn't get a copy. They don't need one and aren't entitled to one by law, regardless of what the lease states.

Chances of a 'mad man' charging through the door with keys in hand is minuscule, yes. Chances of an old tenant trying their luck at finding anything worth nicking in a place they'd kept a key to are fair to middling, I'd have said. Plus, who wants the landlord being able to let themselves in whenever they fancy? Just because they're not supposed to doesn't mean they don't try. I rented crappy bedsits and HA flats for years in my youth and always changed the barrels when I moved into a new place then changed them back again when I moved on. It's really easy, can't think that you'd even need youtube if you're even minimally practical, OP.

Just change the barrel. Google it, it's easy. Keep the original barrel and put it back when you move out. You're fully allowed to do this. It's your home, you're allowed to secure it, and it doesn't do any damage.

Oh c'mon everyone, the chances of this happening are minuscule!

Do you buy insurance? It's the same thing. The chances of your place burning down, or you needing hospital treatment when on holiday are low, but it's still a good idea to have insurance in place.