Front door was kicked hard

KilOit

A few days ago our front door to the house was kicked really hard during the day. We have a door then a porch door so they wouldn't get in. It alerted 2 people in the house and the dog went ballistic, a member of the household went to investigate straight away and saw no one.

Was this an attempt to test if the house was alarmed during the day?
has anyone heard of this happening before?

dogmatix

Yes - it happened to a relative a number of years ago. Give the front door an almighty kick and see if that forces it open. If successful, they rush in and grab as many items as possible in about 2 minutes - then scarper. Having a monitored alarm is no deterrent as they don't intend to be there long enough.

I would say it was a test to see how strong the door was or maybe the alarm as you suggested.

yosser hughes

KilOit wrote: »

A few days ago our front door to the house was kicked really hard during the day. We have a door then a porch door so they wouldn't get in. It alerted 2 people in the house and the dog went ballistic, a member of the household went to investigate straight away and saw no one.

Was this an attempt to test if the house was alarmed during the day?
has anyone heard of this happening before?

where do you live? Is it an estate? Did any neighbours see anything?

rubadub

Was there anything valuable visible from outside?

If they were testing alarms I would guess they would ring the doorbell first.

Amalgam

Not just to test for alarm, to see if you have the deadbolt/turnkey lock on, or just the latch. Much easier to burst the door if the latch is all that is keeping the door closed.

A chisel like instrument is wedged in at an angle where the latch is and the door is rushed, the lock pops off the door and entry is achieved..

Even if you're in, make it a habit to engage any secondary locks on your front door, do not depend on just the latch lock.

Take the keys from the door too.

EDIT: Just to add, there's a more discreet way of checking, the front of the foot (toes) is pressed down on the bottom of the door frame, if just the latch is on, there will be an impressive amount of 'give' and flex in the door. Try it yourself and be ready to be surprised.

RebelButtMunch

Amalgam wrote: »

Not just to test for alarm, to see if you have the deadbolt/turnkey lock on, or just the latch. Much easier to burst the door if the latch is all that is keeping the door closed.

A chisel like instrument is wedged in at an angle where the latch is and the door is rushed, the lock pops off the door and entry is achieved..

Even if you're in, make it a habit to engage any secondary locks on your front door, do not depend on just the latch lock.

Take the keys from the door too.

EDIT: Just to add, there's a more discreet way of checking, the front of the foot (toes) is pressed down on the bottom of the door frame, if just the latch is on, there will be an impressive amount of 'give' and flex in the door. Try it yourself and be ready to be surprised.

It's debatable on whether you want to take the keys from the door.
A) you might need them to get out in an emergency
do you want someone up in your bedroom looking for your car keys?

alex.middleton

This has been happening a lot in D6 recently, there is a massive lack of garda presence down here. I'd say to everyone to keep vigilant and install cctv

alex.middleton

This has been happening a lot in D6 recently, there is a massive lack of garda presence down here. I'd say to everyone to keep vigilant and install cctv