Last week, a locksmith in Arlingon, Virginia (US) was called out by a man who was, he said, locked out of his house. His keys and ID were locked inside the house. After gaining entry to the property, the locksmith waited while the man went to get his ID – except he didn’t know where it was. After he rummaged through drawers looking for ID and keys, the locksmith became suspicious, and threatened to call the local police department unless the man could produce some ID. At this point, the man ran away. The locksmith, of course, called the police.
This raises some interesting points. In many cases, when someone is locked out of their car or home, they have also locked their ID inside. Sometimes there are other ways to identify the person as the occupant – a neighbour who can identify them, for example, or the locksmith can ask them to identify something about the property (e.g. “what’s the code for the alarm/garage”) – but sometimes the only option is to wait until the house is open so that the person can access their ID.
From the homeowner’s perspective, of course, this reinforces how important it is to keep your ID, keys etc. in a safe place. If a burglar manages to enter your home (by any method) leaving the keys just inside the door makes things easier for them.
It’s a good thing the burglar called a reputable locksmith! Of course, this is unlikely to become a widespread burglary method – it relies on contact with a locksmith who would easily be able to identify the burglar (as the locksmith did in this case – he was able to give a detailed description to the police).
If you are concerned about the security of your home we would be happy to advise you – why not give us a call?
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