In short:
- Your safety comes first. If the intruders might still be inside, stay out and phone SAPS on 10111.
- Leave damaged doors, locks and windows as they are until the police have been, so fingerprints and other evidence aren't lost.
- Get a case number from SAPS. Your insurer will want it, along with photos and records of repair costs.
- Once the police are done, secure every damaged entry point before night. Then deal with anything the burglars may have taken that opens your locks.
- Use the repair to fix weak points, not just to put back what failed.
The first few minutes
Finding a forced door or a broken window is a shock, and it's natural to rush in to see what's gone. Don't. If there's any chance the intruders are still on the property, stay outside, get somewhere safe and phone for help.
- SAPS: 10111. It's the first number to call for a serious crime. From a cellphone, 112 is also an emergency number.
- Your armed response or security company, if you have one. They can check the property, but they shouldn't handle anything before the police arrive.
- Your body corporate, estate security or business park gatehouse, so guards know the police and later a locksmith are expected.
At a business, keep staff out until the building has been checked, and stop anyone from tidying up.
Keep the evidence intact
The damaged lock, the bent security gate, the cut padlock: all of it is evidence. Police may want to take fingerprints or look at marks, and an insurer may send someone to see how entry was made.
Don't clean up, move broken parts or start repairs until the police say they're finished with the scene. Ask private security staff not to handle anything either; evidence can be lost before SAPS arrives.
While you wait, without touching anything:
- Photograph or video every damaged door, gate, window and lock, from a distance and close up.
- Note what you can see is missing, but don't search through drawers yet.
- At a business, ask whoever manages your CCTV to save the footage before it's recorded over.
Reporting to SAPS and claiming from insurance
You can report a crime at any police station, by phone, or to police on patrol. If it's reported away from your local station, the docket is sent to the station for the area where the crime happened. An officer interviews you and takes a statement, which you sign once you've checked it. You'll be given a reference number for the case. Write it down and keep it safe; you'll need it for every follow-up and for your insurance claim.
Insurers generally ask for:
| Item | Why |
|---|---|
| SAPS case or reference number | Shows the crime was reported |
| Photos and video of the damage | Shows how entry was made and what was damaged |
| List of what was taken, with values | The basis of the claim; invoices, boxes, manuals and photos help |
| Records of emergency repair costs | Emergency repairs to doors, locks and windows may be claimable; keep every record |
Check your own policy for deadlines and conditions, and tell your insurer as soon as you can. If the insurer wants to inspect the damage, ask whether you may secure the property first, and photograph everything before it's repaired.
Reading the damage at each entry point
Once the police are done, walk around every door, gate and window, including the ones you think weren't used. Marks on a door that held can still mean a damaged lock.
| What you find | What it usually means |
|---|---|
| Lock works, but the frame is split where the bolt goes in | The lock may be fine; the frame and strike need repair or reinforcing before it can hold |
| Cylinder damaged, loose or missing | The cylinder needs replacing, and the lock body behind it should be checked |
| Key turns but the bolt doesn't move, or the lock is jammed | Internal damage; repair or replacement of the lock |
| Security gate or trellis bent, lock won't close | Gate lock and possibly the gate itself need attention |
| Padlock or hasp cut, or a roller shutter bent | New padlock or hasp; a bent shutter needs its slats or guides repaired too, which we also do |
| Safe tampered with | Have it checked before trusting it again; see safe repairs |
Securing the place before tonight
Getting the property lockable again is the priority, even if a better long-term fix comes later. Our break-in repair service covers damaged locks, cylinders and gate locks at homes and businesses. The technician tries to repair what's there; where that isn't possible, they'll explain the options and quote before anything is done.
A few points to settle with the technician:
- Which entry points need work tonight, and which can wait for a proper repair.
- Whether a like-for-like part is enough, or whether the failed part should be upgraded.
- Whether the frame or door itself needs a carpenter or glazier as well.
- What records your insurer will want of the work.
The R250 call-out brings the technician to you, the work is quoted on site first, and you pay by EFT, cash or card once you've agreed. We're open 24/7, so a break-in discovered in the middle of the night doesn't have to wait for morning.
If keys, remotes or access cards were taken
Keys are easy to overlook when you list what was taken, and a stolen key can matter more than the lock that was broken. Check your key hooks, drawers, handbags and car. If anything is missing:
- Replace the cylinders or locks those keys open, starting with the outside doors. A key that's out there is a way back in.
- Ask your estate, complex or business park to cancel any stolen tags, cards or gate remotes.
- Have your alarm company change the codes if the code was written down anywhere.
- If car keys were taken, see what to do about lost car keys and tell your insurer.
Using the repair to fix weak points
A break-in shows exactly where a property was weakest. When you replace a damaged cylinder, ask about cylinders tested for resistance to attack, not simply the lowest-priced replacement. When a security gate lock failed, the gate's fit and frame may be part of the problem; security gate lock problems explains why. For shops, restaurants and offices, our guide to locking up a shop or restaurant at night covers routines as well as hardware.
In a sectional title complex, changes to the outside of your unit, such as a new security gate, may need the trustees' written consent under the scheme's conduct rules unless the change is minor. Replacing a damaged lock with a similar one usually isn't an issue, but check before a bigger upgrade.
For our other services around the area, see our Kempton Park mobile locksmith homepage.
Questions
Should I call a locksmith before the police have been?
You can phone us so we know the job is coming, but the scene should be left as it is until SAPS has finished. Repairing a door first can destroy evidence the police and your insurer may want.
Do I have to replace a lock if the door was forced but the lock still works?
Not always. Sometimes the frame or strike took the damage and the lock is fine. The technician checks the lock and tells you whether it can stay; if the burglars took keys that fit it, though, replacing the cylinder is the sensible step.
Can you make spare keys for the new locks?
No. We don't copy keys. New locks and cylinders come with their own keys from the manufacturer, so you know exactly how many exist.
Need a locksmith to look at it?
If this hasn't solved the problem, our break-in lock repairs service covers it. We're a mobile locksmith in Kempton Park, so we come to your door.
Sources and further reading
- Vuk'uzenzele (GCIS): The police need your help: how to report a crime — Report by phone, in person at any station or to patrolling police; dockets are transferred to the right station; statements; a reference number for the case.
- EWN: 10111, 112 or 107: what number should you call in an emergency? — 10111 connects callers to SAPS and is the first port of call for serious crimes; 112 can be called from a cellphone.
- Trellidor: How to handle a burglary — Wait until fingerprints and statements are taken before touching anything; keep private security from handling items before police arrive.
- Dialdirect: How to file a home insurance claim after a burglary — Case number needed for the claim; photos of damage; list of stolen items; emergency repairs to doors, locks and windows after police are done, with records kept.
- Sectional Titles Schemes Management Regulations, Annexure 2, rule 5: Appearance of section and exclusive use area — Trustees' written consent for changes to the external appearance of a section unless minor.