First day after a break-in
Go through this top to bottom. It keeps a hard day in order and makes sure nothing that got taken, from keys to remotes to codes, still opens your home.
First minutes
- Think someone could still be inside? Stay out, get somewhere safe and call 911
- Everyone safe and the intruder gone: report it to police
- Note the file number the police give you
Record it before cleaning up
- Take photos of where they got in: the door, frame, lock or window, and any pry marks
- Photograph each room that was touched, the whole room and then the details
- Record a slow video walking through every room
- Begin a list of missing items and keep adding as you notice more
- Hold on to broken things until the insurance company tells you to discard them
The insurance claim
- Phone your insurance company or broker early
- Keep the police file number, the list and the photos together
- Save every receipt for cleaning and emergency repairs to make the home secure
- Check your coverage before you book any repair
Lock up by tonight
- The door they forced still shuts and latches
- No crack in the frame around the strike plate
- The lock has not been drilled, pried or wrenched
- All the other doors lock too: patio, side, basement, and garage to house
- If a door won't lock, call tonight instead of wedging a chair under it
What they might have taken
- House keys missing: rekey or replace every lock those keys open
- Garage remote missing: wipe the opener's memory, pair your remotes again and reset the keypad
- Car key missing: have it deleted from the car's computer
- New codes on any smart lock or keypad
- Bank cards or a phone or laptop gone: call the bank and reset passwords
- Signs someone tried the safe: make sure it still opens as it should
Later that week
- Long screws through the strike plates into the framing
- Deadbolts that go fully into the frame
- Nothing within arm's reach of a lock through nearby glass
- Good lighting by the doors and along the driveway
- Let neighbours know, and ask if their cameras recorded anything