Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Somebody rung my doorbell at 6.30am! Why??

129 replies

ThatsSoFetch · 24/12/2018 07:27

I live on my own with my 2 children - 4 and 9 - and not in the nicest neighbourhood but honestly we have never had any problems. This morning though at 6.30am somebody rung my doorbell!

I went downstairs, peeped through the peephole and saw there was a person stood there but couldn't make out a face as it was dark. I asked through the door several times 'Who is it?' Very loudly I might add! And got no reply.

So I ran upstairs to get my phone - in case I needed to call the police - ran back to front door and proceeded to ask who they were again. Still no answer. So ran to my living room (3 storey house so this is upstairs) to look out the window to watch someone leaving but nobody left so they must have left the front door before I physically had eyes on it - window is locked so took a few seconds longer to locate the key.

I don't need to ask the question of if any of you would have opened the door as I'm fairly sure you would have all not opened it either but - I thought should I ring the police anyway on the non urgent line just to mention it? Bearing in mind I couldn't tell them anything about who it was.

Equally pretty worried about the house - we have motorbikes in the garage and it's that time of year isn't it!!!!

OP posts:
Lovestonap · 24/12/2018 08:46

I would have opened the front door. At my house. Because that's my judgement. The OP is entitled to her own and I agree with a PP - the OP was right to follow her own instincts with regard to her safety.

Too many women come to harm because they override their instincts because of social conditioning.

AntiHop · 24/12/2018 08:47

If it had been a delivery driver or a neighbour needing help, they would have answered your question. You were right not to open it.

Hofuckingho · 24/12/2018 08:47

Anchor

Oh come on... it's really not. People don't "case" houses by pressing doorbells and seeing if anyone answers

What planet are you from?

mmmgoats · 24/12/2018 08:47

we had this in our previous neighbourhood. turned out to be a burglary tactic to see who was home. happened a fair few times along our street and a few other streets and they were eventually caught because someone didnt answer the door so they broke in...

just saying OP isn’t necessarily being hysterical. I’m not sure I would call the police after one time though we only reported it after speaking to neighbours and realising quite a lot of people had experienced a similar thing...

Itssosunnyout · 24/12/2018 08:49

I wouldn't open the door. If if was a neighbour in need they would have replied and would have rang more than once.

Juells · 24/12/2018 08:49

Get a light outside the door if you don't already have one. Then even if you don't answer the door you can turn the light on to let whoever it is know there's someone home.

redandyellowandpinkandgreen99 · 24/12/2018 08:49

I would have been super pissed off, but police? No.

I would have shouted out of the window 'Who is THAT?!' But that would have been it.

If it kept happening, then of course, you would have to review this.

CrookedMe · 24/12/2018 08:49

@Hofuckingho why a reality check?

My doorbell rang last night at ten to midnight. I was upstairs reading but DH answers; it was our neighbour telling me I'd left the car door wide open!

Not everything is sinister.

Honestly, calling the police about a doorknock in the busiest delivery week of the year would just be fucking madness.

CherryPavlova · 24/12/2018 08:50

I’d assume it was a delivery or tradesman. I would have opened the bedroom window to talk to them.

Lauren83 · 24/12/2018 08:56

That would have freaked me out but I wouldn't call the police, a few years ago I live d on my own and someone started furiously knocking on my door around 4am, I looked out of the window and there was a motorbike with the engine still running in the middle of the road, I switched the light on and they ran and jumped on the bike with their helmet on and sped off, really spooked me

PrivateVasquez · 24/12/2018 08:57

I wouldn't immediately think someone knocking at 6.30am was dodgy, but if I repeatedly shouted "who is it?" through the door and they didn't respond, then I would.

Phuquocdreams · 24/12/2018 08:58

Christ, I thought I was a bit lax on the safety front, and I live on a reasonably naice area, but there’s no way I would open a door if alone with two children if it were dark to someone who had not identified themself. Why on earth would you?

BuggerOffAndGoodDayToYou · 24/12/2018 08:59

*DH opened the door at 6.40 this morning... it was a postman with a package.....

I love my postie, but if he'd rung my bell at 06:40 he'd get the rough side of my tongue.

Unless you had lights on & it was obvious people were up of course.*

We are very glad he did knock... it was one of DSs gifts... if we’d refused to open the door then we wouldn’t have got it until AFTER Christmas.

Poor posties are damned if they do and damned if they don’t......

ChristmasFlary · 24/12/2018 09:00

Don't think the OP is coming back.

greendale17 · 24/12/2018 09:04

You were wise to not open the door. You asked who it was and this was ignored.

^I agree

Thentherewascake · 24/12/2018 09:05

Postman came on last week twice before 7am, and we were really grateful to get our parcels - and hadn't left for work yet, so even better!

Nothing wrong in not opening the door but a window to ask who it is of course, at any time of the day! If someone wants to kick your door open they still will, but at least you avoid someone pushing past you.

Calling the police because someone rang your doorbell? Grin Classic MN

PinkSparklyPussyCat · 24/12/2018 09:15

I wouldn't have answered. We've got a Ring doorbell which is great if I can't be arsed to open the door - I can see who it is from the comfort of my bed or sofa!

captainprincess · 24/12/2018 09:18

You absolutely did the right thing by not answering. I would have done exactly what you did, asked loudly who was there.
Very suspicious they didn't answer you.

HopeGarden · 24/12/2018 09:19

It’s an unusually early time for someone to ring the doorbell, I can understand why the OP didn’t feel comfortable opening the door.

The lack of response to shouted questions would also make me suspicious, I’d expect a response from someone who had a good reason to ring the doorbell.

And while I don’t know what it’s like where OP lives, almost all our parcel deliveries are delivered by someone who’s pulled up outside our house in their van, so I’d expect to see a vehicle in the road outside if we were getting an unexpected delivery.
Not likely it was a delivery for OP anyway, or theyd have stuck a “sorry we missed you” card through the letterbox.

TitsalinaBumSquash · 24/12/2018 09:24

Where on earth do you people live to be so scared of opening the door?
I feel sorry for the state of the world where everyone is afraid of everyone.

I've had to ring a door very early in the morning before when I've been walking the dog and encountered someone having a diabetic hypo and didn't have my phone to call for an ambulance, luckily they opened the door and assisted me, god knows what would have happened if they'd followed the people on here who can't imagine opening their door when not expecting anyone. Bizarre!

CoughLaughFart · 24/12/2018 09:24

Ffs, it was a delivery. They ring the bell to let you know it’s there, then leave.

It’s amazing how many people on MN get completely unexpected deliveries. I personally tend to know when I’m expecting a delivery (because I, you know, ordered it) - and if I was expecting a delivery around Christmas I’d be desperate for it to arrive on time. If the OP had been waiting for a delivery, she’d have at least considered that that might be what this was.

OP - you did the right thing. I personally wouldn’t ring the police as you have nothing concrete to tell them, but you were right to put your safety first.

PrivateVasquez · 24/12/2018 09:34

I've had to ring a door very early in the morning before when I've been walking the dog and encountered someone having a diabetic hypo and didn't have my phone to call for an ambulance, luckily they opened the door and assisted me

But if they had not opened the door and instead shouted "who is it?", would you have stood silently in the dark? Or would you have called back "Please help, I encountered someone having a diabetic hypo and don't have my phone to call for an ambulance"?

BookMeOnTheSudExpress · 24/12/2018 09:38

People need to give over with their scary anecdotes.
The merailing is ridiculous.
I once knew someone who was knocked over crossing the road so NONE OF YOU MUST EVER DO IT AGAIN!!!!
We've all got a scary example if we think about it. Most of us choose to see horses not zebras though.

CoughLaughFart · 24/12/2018 09:46

But if they had not opened the door and instead shouted "who is it?", would you have stood silently in the dark? Or would you have called back "Please help, I encountered someone having a diabetic hypo and don't have my phone to call for an ambulance"?

Exactly. Or continued to bang on the door if you didn’t get an instant answer?

god knows what would have happened if they'd followed the people on here who can't imagine opening their door when not expecting anyone. Bizarre!

Gone to the next house maybe - just as you would have done of no one had been at home, or if they’d been asleep and hadn’t heard you?

GinIsIn · 24/12/2018 10:01

Who are all these people who call the police when someone rings the door bell?! And you wonder why there aren’t enough police resources for genuine crime. Hmm

Swipe left for the next trending thread