Burglary repairs
Burglary Repairs in Bournemouth
Call with your postcode for a current arrival estimate.
- 24-hour emergency cover
- No call-out charge
- Price agreed before work starts
Been Broken Into? Here Is What Matters First
If someone may still be inside, or the property looks unsafe, do not go in: call 999. When you know it is safe, ring the police before anyone else, us included. The police decide when work at the entry point can start, so nothing there should be secured, boarded, repaired or cleaned until they say so.
HD Locksmiths Bournemouth repairs the damage and makes the property secure again, 24 hours a day. You can ring for advice before the police have finished, to know what happens next.
Before You Touch Anything
The natural reaction after a break-in is to start tidying and work out what has gone. It is worth holding off for a while. Forensic evidence is easiest to recover in the first few hours, and ordinary handling wipes much of it away.
Rather than a vague "don't touch anything", here is what that means in practice:
- Leave the entry point alone: the forced door, the broken window and the area around them.
- Do not pick up anything the intruder may have dropped.
- Keep away from glass or debris near where they got in.
- Avoid using the bathroom, since intruders sometimes do and may have left evidence there.
- Do not handle drawers, door handles or surfaces that have clearly been disturbed.
- Photograph the scene from a distance rather than up close.
Pictures of the entry point and of each room affected help the police, and they help your insurance claim too.
What We Repair Following a Break-In
Most break-in repairs come down to five areas. The common thread is that forced entry can affect the lock, the door and surrounding hardware together, so the repair looks at all of them.
Boarding up where this is needed
If a permanent door, window or glazing repair cannot be completed straight away, temporary boarding closes off the damaged opening. Arrangements for the follow-up work are made after the entrance has been secured.
Doors with door frames
Force at the lock commonly damages the keep, strike plate, door edge or surrounding frame. A door forced at the lock usually has some frame damage, and repairing the lock alone leaves it weak. For substantial joinery or structural work, a carpenter or door specialist may be needed.
Locks and cylinders
A snapped cylinder, drilled lock or broken mortice case is replaced like for like or upgraded, depending on what the door needs and what the policy asks. Where keys to the property were stolen, the affected locks may need changing so the stolen keys no longer work.
Mechanisms in uPVC and composite doors
The multipoint mechanism in a forced door is often damaged along with the cylinder. Continuing to close does not mean the door is undamaged; it may still need attention.
Windows and their window locks
Handles and locking mechanisms on forced windows are repaired or replaced. A glazier is required if the glass is broken or a sealed glazing unit is damaged, and we will make that clear.
See also window lock repair and.
When Can You Secure the Property?
Is it better to wait for the police or to make the place secure? Honestly, both pressures are real. The police want the scene untouched. Your insurer will expect you not to leave the property open. And intruders sometimes come back to an address for things they could not carry first time round, so an open door is a genuine risk.
The way through is to ask rather than assume. Ask the police when they expect to attend, whether forensics are coming, and when the entry point can be worked on. If they are on their way soon, wait. If they cannot reach you until the next day, call the police non-emergency line to ask whether securing may begin now; the entry point stays untouched until they allow work.
There is a practical reason the question matters. Working on a door means handling it, and gloves or not, a locksmith can disturb marks at the entry point. On the insurance side, most insurers expect to be told promptly, so check your policy wording tonight rather than later.
Paperwork for an Insurance Claim
What do insurers usually ask for? Most insurers will want evidence from the police, evidence of the damage and invoices for the work, but requirements vary. The safest approach is to check your policy, contact your insurer promptly and ask what evidence they need. Typically that means keeping:
- the crime reference number the police supplied;
- photographs taken in accordance with police guidance;
- every piece of correspondence from your insurer;
- invoices for temporary securing and for completed repair work.
Keep it with the crime reference number and your photographs. If there is particular information your insurer requests about the damage, repair or locks fitted, tell us before work begins. Your insurer will decide what the policy covers.
Locksmith pricing
What Do Burglary Repairs Cost?
The honest answer is that it depends, and here is on what. Burglary repair costs turn on the damage, the entrance affected and whether the work is immediate or follow-up:
- The type and extent of the damage.
- Repair or temporary securing.
- Locks, cylinders and other components.
- Sourcing compatible replacement parts, if needed.
- Normal working hours versus out of hours.
We give you a price on the call. That price is based on your description and stays the same unless the job turns out different on site; you are told about any change before work starts. There is no separate call-out fee, and the bill is for the labour, parts and work agreed with you. You pay for the work carried out, any parts needed, and VAT. Rates outside Monday to Friday, 7am to 6pm, are higher, but the call-out itself is never charged. Claiming on insurance?
What affects the cost?
Service required, time of attendance, lock and door type, labour and parts.
Secure Tonight and Repaired Properly Afterwards
Burglary repairs usually happen in two stages, and knowing that takes some of the pressure off. Work needs police permission; the first visit makes the property safe to leave and sleep in. Sometimes the entrance can be repaired there and then. Sometimes it needs temporary securing, with a temporary lock or boarding, while compatible parts are sourced or a glazier, door or frame specialist is lined up. Which of those applies depends on the condition of the entrance: an immediate repair, a replacement component or boarding.
The second stage is the permanent repair. It follows once the police have finished, the insurer has been told and any parts needed are in hand. Additional work, a replacement part or a return visit is discussed with you separately, and the work and price are confirmed before that next stage begins, so you always know where you stand.
Start with how they got in
This is information for when you are ready, not a decision for tonight. A break-in shows where a property's security gave way, and the entry point is where to begin. Forced entry may affect several components at once, including the lock, the cylinder, the keeps and the frame, so a review of the complete entrance helps decide whether a single replacement part is enough.
Standards that answer the attack
For a forced timber door, suitable doors may use qualifying locks certified to BS 3621, which some policies specify. For a snapped cylinder, euro cylinders and compatible hardware may carry TS 007 ratings, and qualifying cylinders may carry SS 312 Diamond certification. These ratings apply to the particular products or hardware combinations concerned; none of them certifies the whole door or guarantees that every insurance policy is met.
No pressure to go further
A more extensive upgrade is not automatically required, and like for like is a reasonable choice. Some of this may fall within your claim. Consider any written requirement from your insurer, landlord or managing agent, and ask them to put the required specification in writing before you choose a lock on compliance grounds. Further reading: the BS 3621 door locks guide and the anti-snap locks guide.
Burglary Repairs Across Bournemouth
Break-in repairs are attended for homeowners, tenants, landlords and business premises across Bournemouth, since a damaged door cannot stay open overnight once the police have cleared work to begin.
Cover includes Charminster, Winton, Moordown, Pokesdown, Springbourne and Boscombe, and every postcode in the BH1 to BH11 districts and the parts of BH13 around Bournemouth. Dorset Police recorded 749 burglaries across the Bournemouth built-up area in the 12 months from September 2025 to August 2026 (data.police.uk). Report a break-in to Dorset Police on 101 or online at dorset.police.uk and get a crime reference before you claim.
| Recorded by police in Bournemouth (Sep 2025 to Aug 2026) | 12 months | Monthly average | Highest month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burglary | 749 | 62 | Aug 2026 (78) |
| Criminal damage and arson | 1,371 | 114 | Aug 2026 (140) |
Source: Dorset Police records published on data.police.uk (OGL v3), Sep 2025 to Aug 2026. Counts are anonymised records mapped inside the Bournemouth built-up area, not a measure of the risk to any one home.
See all areas we cover.
What Happens When You Call Us
The process is short and predictable.
- Start by telling us what was damaged and whether the police have authorised work at the entry point; their permission is needed before it begins.
- The price is given on the phone, together with an honest arrival estimate of we aim to be with you in around 30 minutes, though it can take longer depending on where our nearest locksmith is.
Emergency and planned locksmith services
Call HD Locksmiths Bournemouth
Calls are answered 24 hours a day, and there is no call-out charge. Ring for advice even if the police have not finished, and you will be told what happens next.
- Phone: 01202 935089
01202 935089
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I call the police or a locksmith first?
The police, always. Call 999 if the break-in may still be in progress, someone could be inside or anyone is in immediate danger; otherwise report it through the police non-emergency route. They give you a crime reference number for your insurer. Ask whether the damaged entrance must stay untouched before repairs or boarding, and tell them if the property cannot be secured. Then call us: the line is open 24 hours, so you can ring for advice before they have finished.
Can I secure my door before the police have been?
Check with the police before you do. When forensics are due soon, wait for them, since repairing a door means handling it and that can disturb marks at the entry point. When the police cannot come until the next day, call the police non-emergency line to ask whether you may secure the property now. Do not begin securing it until they say you may.
Will my insurance cover the repairs?
Possibly, depending on the incident, the necessary work and your policy. The insurer will decide if the claim falls within your cover. Make early contact to establish what information or approval is required. Keep insurer letters and messages, permitted photos, your crime reference and all repair invoices.
Do I need to change my locks if nothing was damaged?
Missing keys are the deciding factor. If any were taken, change the affected locks so they no longer work, because the lock being undamaged is not the point; the person with the key can simply return. Do the same if the intruder could have reached spare keys kept indoors. Where no keys are missing and no lock was forced, the locks may be fine, and we will tell you if that is what we find.
Can everything be fixed the same night?
Not always, and you do not need it to be. What matters tonight, after the police allow work, is making the property safe to leave and sleep in, through an immediate repair, a temporary lock or boarding. The permanent repair follows after the police have finished and the necessary parts have been sourced. We explain which stage you are at, and confirm its price, before doing anything.
Could they come back?
Sometimes, yes. Intruders do occasionally come back to the same address within days, especially for things they could not carry away first time. The sensible response is practical rather than anxious: once the police allow work, get the property secured promptly and properly repaired instead of leaving temporary boarding in place for weeks.
My uPVC door was forced but it still closes. Is it damaged?
Possibly, and it is worth having checked. A forced uPVC door often damages the multipoint mechanism inside even where the door and frame look intact, and the fault frequently shows up days later as a handle that will not lift. A door that still closes may still need attention. If it was forced at the lock, assume the mechanism took the strain and have it looked at.
What if the frame is damaged as well as the lock?
It often is. Force at the lock tends to split the frame around the keep, and a new lock in a damaged frame leaves the weak point where it was. If the frame can be repaired, it is done alongside the lock. If the work is bigger than one visit allows, the property is made secure first and the repair finished on a return visit, or by a carpenter or door specialist for major joinery.
Still have a question or need urgent assistance? Call 01202 935089, tell us what has happened and receive a current arrival estimate.