After a Break-In: How to Secure Your Doors and Locks

Coming home to a forced door is upsetting, and it leaves you with a practical problem: a house that may not lock properly tonight. Take things in the right order. Safety and the police come first, and the locks come right after.

Step 1: Safety and the police

Let the police go in first. Try not to touch the door, the lock or anything that was moved until they have seen it. What looks like damage to you may be evidence to them.

Step 2: Document everything

Take photos of the door, the frame, the lock and the strike from several angles before anything is repaired. Photograph anything else that was damaged. You will want them for the police report and for your insurance claim, and repairs can erase details that matter.

Step 3: Check every door, not just the one that was forced

A break-in is a good reason to look at the whole house. On every exterior door, check:

• Does the deadbolt slide all the way into the frame?
• Is the strike firm, or loose and bent?
• Is the lock cylinder scratched, pulled out or loose?
• Is the door frame split near the lock?

Step 4: If keys were taken, change the cylinders

Look for your spare keys. If any keys were taken, especially along with anything that shows your address, assume they could be used. Changing the lock cylinders means those keys will not open your doors.

Step 5: Make the entry point stronger

When a door is forced, it is usually the frame that gives, not the lock. When the damaged lock is replaced, it is the moment to strengthen what holds it:

• A reinforcement plate at the strike spreads force across more of the frame.
• Long screws that reach the framing behind the trim, instead of short screws that only hold the trim.
• A deadbolt on any exterior door that only has a knob lock.

If the frame is broken

When the wood around the lock is split, a new lock alone will not hold. The frame has to be repaired before a lock can do its job. Until then, you may need a temporary way to keep the door shut, such as a door brace from inside, or staying elsewhere for the night.

Habits that make the next attempt harder

• Lock the deadbolt every time, not just the knob, even when you are home.
• Stop hiding keys outside. Leave a spare with a neighbor instead. Our guide on where to keep a spare house key covers the options.
• Know who has keys, and take them back when someone moves out.

Our guide on choosing a deadbolt explains what to look for in a replacement.