Do you lock your doors when you're home?

[kiana2015]

My husband has a habit of not locking the door behind him when he leaves for work if I'm up, this morning I was in the kitchen washing DD's bottles when he left, I spent a good 30 minutes in the kitchen before I came out and realised the door was unlocked whilst DD was upstairs asleep, I panicked and was rather annoyed with him. It got me thinking, when you're home do you lock your doors? Since DD came I've had this awful anxiety about the door being locked and someone comes strolling in, the way the world is now it wouldn't surprise me if this happens, does anyone else have the same fears?

Yes always. For safety like you say but also so my children don’t go out the door 🤦🏼‍♀️

We always do but I bet a lot of people will come along on here soon and say they’ve never heard of such a thing and why would you do that etc.

I try to, but often forget.
When dd and her bf lived here they rarely did and I'd frequently come home to find the door unlocked and at least one of them fast asleep!
However when I left I always locked them in (thumb turn lock inside so no danger of being stuck) so that they were safe.

All the time. I live on my own and dread anyone coming into my home unless invited.

Yes definitely!

A couple of times, deliver drivers have attempted to open our front door. Possibly because they think it’s a porch but they actually enter straight into our hallway. I’m always surprised at how many people just try and walk in. Bizarre!!

Yes, and I check several times before bed! There's frequently ring doorbell footage on our local Facebook of undesirables trying door handles overnight. They're after handbags and car keys. The idea terrifies me!

I don’t but DH always does and moans that I don’t.
I think I just don’t think about it because growing up we had those old fashioned doors that it didn’t matter whether the bottom lock was locked the top one needed a key regardless.
I do lock it at night though if he hasn’t got there first.

Well, just closing our door means it's secure from the outside, so no need to actively lock it. Makes life easier in this scenario - but if you pop out for the bins and the door blows shut you are screwed!

I do but ds1 is annoyingly bad at waltzing out and leaving it unlocked.

I was thinking about the past and how even in the evenings say we were in the garden we could just let people know 'front doors open just come through' in this day and age I could never,
It's shocking really isn't it

Always. To prevent kids wandering out as well as for security.
I know at one time the local police force had a campaign reminding people to as there was a spate of burglaries that were just someone opening doors and taking whatever was in easy reach.

Glad I'm not the only one, I've also recently heard a story of a delivery driver (could have been someone impersonating I can't remember) sexually assaulting a woman. It's shocking how scared we feel now in our own homes

Always lock

Yes. Am married to a police officer and although we are in a very low crime rate area we always do it. He also has persuaded /told his dad to lock his front door as he never did. I assume he knows what he’s talking about! He also knocks on peoples doors on our estate if their garage door is open and they are nowhere in sight. There are a lot of expensive cycles in those garages. He’s not a drama llama at all , he’s just seen a lot of opportunistic thieves who try doors. See also leaving your car idling on the drive and going back on the house, come back out and no car.

No I don't. My fear of dying in a house fire due to not getting out quick enough is greater than my fear of intruders.

I did always in my last house. In my current house it’s not really a thing because the front door locks automatically when it is closed, and the back garden is completely inaccessible so it doesn’t matter if the back door is locked.

Never, but with the closest house over 500m away, a walled and gated garden and six very noisy dogs it's not a priority!

Yes. People who don’t are naive and/or careless.

As a child we were burgled whilst there were 5 of us in the house. Burglar came in through an unlocked door, we all heard the movement but thought it was one of the rest of us.

Opportunists try doors. Or those more calculating will notice when someone leaves the house without locking up and target that house.

There will be people happy to take their chances and those that will go through life leaving doors unlocked and never be a victim of crime but it’s so easy to lock a door.

No. Sometimes DH locks us in if he leaves first and I get why it's sensible but I find it mildly irritating. Or if he's locked himself in and I have to find my keys when I'm expecting to just walk in.

I left really early today, before 5.45 when everyone was still asleep so I did lock behind me but if the other adult is up and about I wouldn't.

Our front door has a catch so you always need a key to open it. Our garden is enclosed so our back door is often shut but unlocked when we go upstairs etc. You would have to climb the fence, which someone is less likely to do for a closed door.

Depends on the area.

Now i live in a block of flats so yes I lock the door even when I'm in (can't escape out the back door 🤣)

When I lived in rural south of France the door was always open, never mind unlocked and people used to just pop in randomly. It was a safe, community kind of place.

Always. Years ago we had a walk in burglar, they stole the car keys, house keys and wallet and we didn't know until we looked for the keys to lock up at bedtime! Had to have the locks changed, never left the door unlocked since.

Always. To stop the kids escaping when they were little.
Now we live somewhere dodgy it's to stop a chancer breaking in. I've seen how quickly break in's happen.

Always locked and keys out of the door due to then toddler DS being able to unlock the door.
DH used to leave the door unlocked in the summer (years ago) when he came home from work because he’d go into the garden once he was changed. This carried on in the winter when he wasn’t going anywhere so often he’d go up to bed and I’d see that the doors hadn’t been locked all evening. I went mad and said he had to stop. Worst case scenario someone takes DS, best case someone takes your car. He stopped straight away. There’s now been a few burglaries in the area so he’s totally gone the other way and it’s like Fort Knox now.

Always.