To not answer door to neighbour

[Koalababy]

It’s 8 am and neighbour has rung my doorbell twice already. Have no idea what they want but I don’t feel like answering the door. They probably know I’m in which is why they keep ringing the bell but AIBU to ignore until I feel like it?

I would not have answered. Especially not at 8am! WTF?

I have no idea why some people on mumsnet, get so uppity and sniffy about people saying they don't like answering the door.

If I am not expecting anyone, and am not expecting a delivery, I don't usually answer. Why would I?

Also, I can see who is at my door without them seeing me, so if it's someone I like/want to answer to, I answer. If it's a stranger (or someone I am not too keen on,) then I don't answer.

It's not LAW that you have to answer the door when you're not expecting someone. People shouldn't be made to feel bad, or like they're 'weirdos' if they don't want to answer the door.

In fact it's a bit of a weirdo (IMO) who goes to someone's house (uninvited) and expects to be let in. What if the person is asleep, or resting, or busy, or working, or just about to go out, or expecting someone, or their baby has just gone to sleep?

It's so rude and obnoxious and presumptuous to assume you can just knock on someone's door and be let in, and that the person you're visiting has nothing better to do than entertain you.

The posters on here, who think 'just popping in' is OK, (and anyone they visit absolutely should let them in, and entertain them,) are clearly the ones who are the dreaded popper-inners!

And as for being 'open-mouthed with shock,' at some people not wanting to answer the door if they are not expecting someone. LMFAO. As I said, some people are easily shocked!!!

Only you know your neighbours.

If my neighbours did this it would be because there was some sort of emergency.

8am is too early to be banging on people’s doors unless it is an emergency and seeing as you didn’t answer then you won’t know. 🤔😂

However we are all curious so if they do this again please answer the door and tell us what she wants.

We are all in lockdown and need some enlightenment. 😀

Some interesting points regarding differing attitudes from posters!
I don’t answer calls at my door unless I am expecting a delivery or see that it’s a utility meter reader. I have never felt an obligation or been inquisitive enough to do so.
Similarly, I don’t answer calls on my phones if it is inconvenient or I don’t want the interruption.
I wouldn’t consider myself self centred, or rude, I simply don’t feel the need to spend my time responding to somebody else’s agenda whether that’s an enquiry, taking in a parcel for a neighbour, a cold caller, etc. It’s my personal choice whether to respond or reply or ignore.

Its not 'rare' or 'uncommon' at all.

I have plenty of friends + see my family regularly too I only know 2 or 3 people in real life that jump up to open their door when they arent specifically expecting someone, if anything they are the minority and odd ones.

Its not even historically rare, nearly every older person I know (born before the 60s) was taught as a child to never open the door to an unexpected knock and to even hide because it could be debt/bill collecters lol.

I once knocked on my neighbour's door several times - they were in, I could see them moving about behind the glass.

Their shed was on fire.

In the end, I shouted "Fire!!!" through the letterbox several times and they still didn't answer, the twats. So I went home and phoned the fire brigade. Having a huge fire appliance with blue flashing lights on their drive and several large men hauling hoses over their fence finally gained their attention...

We fell out with our neighbour for constantly accosting us when leaving and entering our house. He was the most annoying person. Even tried to keep me talking while I held my child in my arms; obviously ill, on the way to an emergency doctors appointment.

I have never felt such relief as to when he stopped chapping the door about one thing or another and we were left in blissful peace.

Now I see him annoying the poor sod down the road and workmen instead.

I once had to knock on a door as their cat had just been run over and the neighbours told me whose cat it was. They were in. They didn't answer. I hammered on the door and the windows. They still didn't answer. I eventually had to yell 'your cat is dead!' through the letterbox. Then they answered.

It is up to each person. I open it as it may be work or work post so it is a matter of financial survival for me. For others opening it can mean poverty or worse- a lot of neighbours round here have been conned at the door sadly (big houses, very old people).

There was video in the papers the other day of a lady pretending to need help (recorded on someone's door camera). No answer so she moved to the next victim (speaking into her mobile to her accomplice at the same time - caught on the recording).
in the old days middle class people had calling cards and you would alert someone to when you might call on them and there were set hours I think 2pm to 5pm was typical in the 1930s.

We had this. My neighbour rang my door twice at 6.40. To be fair I didn’t know it was my neighbour and didn’t wake the first time

Thank god she persisted though as her house was on fire

Placemarking to find out what the neighbour wanted

Did you find out what they wanted?

I hate answering the door as I dread who it might be (awful ex, someone who wants to talk at me, someone I dont want to see etc) This has got better with the pandemic as hardly anyone comes to the door unless they are delivering something.

I'd love to know where the door openers live.
I live somewhere where people ring the door bell so often it's a complete pain in the arse and really annoying. And it's never anyone I would want to see or get into a discussion with.
I think some of these people claiming we are weird for opening doors would have something to say if they were being disturbed up to 20 times a day by deliveries (not for me), religious organizations, charity chuggers, frozen food door-to-door sales, frozen bread sales etcetc.
Absolute pain in the arse.

He always answers the phone like he's expecting a death threat: "Hellooooooo...?"

@LaMarschallin.
So funny

On a side note, people claiming bafflement at the OP not answering the door, did you not read the bit about the neighbours are CF who just moan about parking or whatever? Example of wolf-crying neighbours who have brought this on themselves.

That would annoy me, it’s a perfectly reasonable time to still be asleep when wfh, or to have just got up to begin at 9.

Once it gets to office hours - so 9/9.30 to be safe until about 6 then I think it’s fine to ring the bell.

What I’m asking though is whether it’s reasonable not to answer the door even if I’m in. For example I’m WFH and am on calls a lot of the day. I don’t want to answer the door whilst I’m working

YANBU. My heart sinks when the bell goes (as I am quite antisocial and also because I have a very unpleasant neighbour, though the rest are very nice). I never answer it after dark anyway as I live alone and my door is not visible to any neighbours. It is absolutely fine not to answer the door if you don't want to (though I hope that, unlike me, you do not have a dog who is proud to bark madly when the bell goes and they might hear you shushing it).

Well I get door bell rung for deliveries all the time.

Loving the dog being on the roof story!
Someone once knocked on our door at 7:10. Very unusual due to time plus we live on a very rural road.
We were all rushing around trying to get dressed and out of the door.
It was a dog walker who found my 3yo outside wearing nothing but his wellies and clutching my phone...

Nowadays the only person who rings the door is one neighbour who likes to discuss everything about anything, very loudly. I tell the kids not to answer the door...hahaha. Our friends just come round the back.

Op, have you found out what they wanted?

@CoronaIsWatching

I never answer my door unless I'm expecting a delivery. Why would I?

Why wouldn't you?

Are we going to find out what the OP's neighbour wanted? Or have I missed a previous post explaining everything?

Last time I knocked on my neighbours door at 8am it was because there was a fire in my house and I was home alone with 2 toddlers.

Really glad that my neighbours answered the door and helped me.

We get a few door rings, I just check through the window who it is and answer if I want to. Its usually a neighbour or delivery person - rarely anyone else as we are reasonably remote. Thankfully get on well with little gang of neighbours

Well this is a dull thread.

I WANT TO KNOW WHAT THE NEIGHBOUR WANTED!!!!!!!