After a Break-In Guide

Reviewed by Richard Uys — NSW Master Security Licence 000 101 663

A break-in is a horrible thing to come home to, and the hours afterwards are confusing precisely when you need them not to be. Who do you call first? Can you clean up? Who fixes what, and who pays? This guide is the sequence we talk burglary-call-out customers through on the phone, written down. Work the steps in order and you’ll cover the police, the insurer, the security of the house tonight, and the claim — without missing anything that costs you later.

Step 1: Call NSW Police immediately

If you discover a break-in while it’s happening — or you’re not certain the intruder has left — do not go inside. Move somewhere safe and call 000. If you discover it after the fact (window broken, door forced, signs of entry, things missing), call the Police Assistance Line on 131 444 or attend your local station; Crime Stoppers (1800 333 000) takes information about the crime itself. Either way, you need an official report and the police event number — it’s the reference your insurer will demand and the number we put on your locksmith invoice.

Until police have attended or told you they won’t be attending in person, don’t touch anything or clean up. It feels wrong to leave your home tipped out on the floor, but fingerprints and shoe marks on glass, benches and door edges are exactly what scene-of-crime officers look for. Photograph everything first — wide shots of each room, close-ups of the damaged door or window, the lock, the frame — because those photos serve both the police report and the insurance claim. Note what’s missing as you notice it; you can amend the list later, and small items (passports, spare car keys, mail) often turn out to matter more than electronics. If spare house keys were taken, tell the police and tell your locksmith — that changes tonight’s job from “recommended” to “urgent”.

Step 2: Ring your insurer before you authorise repairs

Call your home and contents insurer as soon as the police are dealt with — most have 24-hour claim lines. Give them the event number and ask four questions, in this order: (1) Do they require a locksmith report, quotes, or their own assessor before work starts? (2) Will they cover re-keying and lock replacement, and up to what standard? (3) Are there exclusions — for instance, some policies treat entry through an unlocked door or window differently? (4) Do they have preferred repairers you must use, or can you choose your own?

Two practical notes from 22 years of break-in call-outs. First, insurers almost never object to emergency make-safe work — securing the property tonight — even before a claim is assessed; leaving a home unsecured creates a bigger claim, and policies generally oblige you to prevent further loss. Confirm on the call, then proceed. Second, get names, reference numbers and anything important in writing (a follow-up email to the claims address works). If the insurer nominates no preferred locksmith, you’re free to use your own — in the Eastern Suburbs, that’s us on 0411 340 242, and our invoices are formatted for claims.

Step 3: Secure the property tonight — and know who fixes what

A break-in usually leaves two kinds of damage, and they belong to two different trades. Getting this right saves you a night of ringing the wrong people:

• Lock and cylinder damage — that’s us. Forced or snapped cylinders, deadlatches that won’t close, doors that won’t lock, keys stolen: Keytech attends 24/7 for burglary call-outs and makes the locks safe the same night — a re-key, a cylinder swap, or a temporary secure fix followed by proper hardware, depending on damage. Tell us it’s a break-in when you call; it’s a priority job, our 30-minute Eastern Suburbs response target applies, and we quote a fixed price on the phone before dispatch.
• Structural and glass damage — that’s a glazier, carpenter or board-up service. Smashed windows and glass doors need an emergency glazier; splintered frames, kicked-through panels and bent hinges need a carpenter; and if glass can’t be replaced tonight, a 24-hour board-up service will sheet the opening in plywood. We’re locksmiths — we don’t do glazing, structural door or window repair, and we won’t pretend to. Your insurer’s emergency line can usually dispatch their preferred glazier and builder directly, which also keeps those costs cleanly inside the claim.

If you’re stuck at midnight with a smashed pane and no glazier until morning: plywood or thick cardboard taped over the opening, furniture in front of it, and lights on. It’s not security, but it’s weatherproofing and a deterrent — and by then the locks, at least, can already be sorted properly.

Step 4: Re-key or replace every lock the intruder touched

If the break-in involved a forced door, a picked or snapped lock, or — worst case — stolen keys, those locks are compromised. Re-key every lock the intruder touched or could now open. If they came through a window and the door locks were never contacted, re-keying is technically optional — but if any keys were kept near the door or are now unaccounted for, do it anyway. It’s the cheapest peace of mind on the whole claim.

The practical sequence for a typical home: (1) inspect all external doors, not just the obvious entry point — burglars often exit through a different door and unlock it on the way; (2) determine which locks were damaged or accessed; (3) re-key everything compromised so old keys stop working; (4) where a mechanism is actually broken — not just picked — replace the unit entirely rather than patching it. We carry stock in the van, so lock changes and re-keying are almost always completed in the same visit, with fresh keys cut on the spot. If stolen keys included a double-sided deadlock key, we re-key those too. Call 0411 340 242 with your door details and we’ll quote the whole scope, fixed, over the phone. (Wondering about re-key versus change locks generally? Our cost guide explains when each makes sense.)

Step 5: Upgrade the weaknesses the break-in exposed

A break-in is an unwelcome but brutally honest security audit: it shows you exactly where the house was weak. Fix that weakness, not just the damage. If the intruder forced a door easily, the deadbolt was too light or the cylinder too cheap — upgrade to a higher-grade anti-pick, anti-drill unit. If the strike plate tore out of the frame, fit a heavy-duty strike with long screws into the stud, which transforms a door’s resistance for trivial cost. If a rear or side door was the entry point (they usually are — burglars prefer not to work in view of the street), bring it up to the same standard as the front. If windows were the way in, key-operated window locks are the fix, and many insurers expect them as standard.

This is also the moment people go one step further, and sensibly so: restricted-key cylinders that can’t be copied at a kiosk, a keypad or smart lock so there are no keys to steal from a hallway bowl, a high-security letterbox lock if mail was taken. As part of a home security assessment we’ll walk the whole property, tell you plainly what’s weak and what’s fine, and quote only what’s worth doing — fixed, before any work. Every upgrade we fit is covered by our 12-month workmanship warranty. One boundary to note: alarms and CCTV are a different trade (see the FAQ), and structural reinforcement of doors and frames is carpentry — we’ll tell you honestly when you need one of them instead of a locksmith.

Step 6: Document everything and claim from insurance

Ask your locksmith for an itemised invoice that states: the date and time of attendance; which locks were re-keyed, repaired or replaced, door by door; the reason — break-in, with your police event number quoted; and the cost per item and in total. Keytech provides exactly this as standard on burglary call-outs, because we know what claims departments bounce. Submit it with: the police event number and report copy; your photos of the damage; the glazier’s and carpenter’s invoices for the structural side; and your list of stolen items with any receipts or serial numbers you can find.

Keep copies of everything, note the date and name for every insurer phone call, and follow important calls with an email so there’s a written trail. If the insurer approves upgrades (stronger locks than the ones damaged), get that approval in writing before the work if you can — see the FAQ below. Most straightforward, well-documented lock claims are reimbursed without drama; the claims that stall are almost always missing the event number or an itemised invoice.

The after-break-in checklist

• If entry might be in progress, stay out and call 000. Otherwise report via 131 444 or your local station and obtain the police event number.
• Do NOT clean up or touch anything until police have documented the scene.
• Take photos of all damage (broken windows, forced doors, scratched locks) and start a stolen-items list.
• Ring your home-insurance provider. Report the incident, ask what they need, confirm make-safe work can proceed.
• Call Keytech Locksmiths (0411 340 242) for emergency lock make-safe and re-keys — 24/7.
• Call an emergency glazier or board-up service for broken glass, and a carpenter for damaged frames — that structural work is theirs, not the locksmith’s.
• Have a full home-lock inspection. Identify which locks were compromised and which are weak.
• Re-key all compromised locks; replace any broken mechanisms.
• Upgrade weak points: higher-grade anti-pick cylinders, heavy-duty strike plates, key-operated window locks.
• Request an itemised invoice with the event number in the description.
• Submit invoices, photos and the police report to your insurer; keep copies of all correspondence.
• Review the habits the burglar exploited: spare keys hidden outside, doors left unlocked, windows left open, keys visible near the door. Fix these — they’re free.

What if the break-in was through a window, not a door lock?

Then the door locks weren’t broken or picked, and re-keying them is optional rather than essential — though still recommended if any keys are unaccounted for, and cheap enough that most people do it for certainty. The window side is where the real work is, in two halves: the glass itself is the glazier’s job, and the hardware is ours. Inspect every window in the house, not just the broken one: are key-operated locks fitted? Do they work, or have they seized in the salt air? Can ground-floor and balcony-accessible windows be latched open for airflow without being openable from outside? We fit and re-key window locks and can key them alike so one key does the lot. After a window entry, many insurers recommend — and some require — keyed window locks throughout, so check before you claim; fitting them is usually cheaper than a single door-lock replacement.

How long does the locksmith work take after a break-in?

It depends on the damage and how many locks are involved. Emergency make-safe securing is quick — typically well under an hour once we arrive, and our 30-minute Eastern Suburbs response target applies to burglary calls at any hour. A full re-key of every compromised lock plus upgrades takes longer, but because the van carries stock, we complete almost all break-in work in a single visit — most homes are fully re-secured the same day, often the same visit as the make-safe. Staying in an unsecured home is stressful, and stretching the work across days multiplies that; tell us your situation and we’ll give you an honest timeframe and sequence the urgent doors first.

Do you actually need to change the locks if nothing was stolen?

Attempted break-ins — scratched cylinders, chiselled frames, a bent latch, but no entry — deserve the same lock attention as successful ones. A cylinder that’s been attacked may be internally damaged in ways that make it easier to defeat next time, or one cold night away from failing and locking you out. And an attempt is information: someone assessed your home as worth trying, and thwarted burglars sometimes return better prepared. Have the attacked hardware inspected, replace what’s compromised, and treat the attempt as the free warning it is. The police still want to know about attempts too — patterns across a suburb are how they catch people.

Frequently asked questions

Will my insurance cover the locksmith cost?

Most home-insurance policies cover locksmith costs after a break-in if you have a police event number and an itemised invoice. Some policies have exclusions — for example around entry through unlocked doors or windows — so check your PDS and ring your insurer before we attend. Bring the event number so we can put it on the invoice.

Should I install an alarm system after a break-in?

A locksmith secures your doors and windows; an alarm adds detection and monitoring. Many households sensibly combine both. Alarms and CCTV are a different trade (a security installer), and not something Keytech fits — but good locks and a monitored alarm complement each other, and after a second break-in some insurers effectively require the pair.

What if I don’t know how the intruder got in?

We can usually determine it. We inspect all doors and windows for signs of forced entry — scratches, splintered wood, bent hinges — and test each lock for evidence of picking or bumping. Knowing the entry point tells you exactly what to fix, and it’s part of a professional post-break-in lock inspection.

Can I claim the upgrade cost if the old lock was already weak?

Possibly. If the break-in exploited a weak lock, your insurer may cover upgrading to a stronger unit as part of the claim rather than replacing like-for-like. Ask them explicitly — “the intruder forced the front door; is upgrading to a high-security anti-pick lock covered?” — and get the answer in writing if they approve it.

What if the same place is broken into twice?

Treat it as a pattern, because your insurer will. Report the second incident for its own event number, upgrade to high-security locks immediately, and add an alarm — some insurers require verified security measures to keep covering a twice-hit property. Ask the police whether there’s a local pattern; repeat break-ins in an area sometimes mean one operator, and reports are how patrols get targeted.

I’m renting and the place was broken into. Who pays for the locks?

Report to police and tell both your agent and your own contents insurer. Repairing break-in damage to locks and doors is generally the landlord’s responsibility (their building insurance), while your stolen belongings fall under your contents policy. Don’t wait unsecured for office hours, though — the property needs making safe tonight; keep the invoice and the event number and the reimbursement follows the lease.

How fast can Keytech get to me after a break-in?

Burglary call-outs are priority jobs. We’re based at 236 Rainbow Street, Coogee NSW 2034, we cover the Eastern Suburbs 24/7 with a 30-minute response target, and we quote a fixed price on the phone before the van moves. The number is 0411 340 242, at 3am exactly as at 3pm.

Just had a break-in in the Eastern Suburbs? Call Keytech Locksmiths on 0411 340 242, any hour. We’ll make your locks safe tonight, re-key or replace whatever was compromised, and hand you an insurance-ready itemised invoice — fixed quote before dispatch, 12-month workmanship warranty, NSW Master Licence 000 101 663 and Security Licence 000209450, 22 years serving the Eastern Suburbs. For glass and structural damage we’ll point you to the right trade honestly — we handle the locks. Non-urgent questions: info@keytechlocksmiths.com.au, or see our emergency service, commercial locksmith page for business break-ins, our service areas — and if you’re reading this before anything has happened, our lockout guide and strata guide cover the rest of home and building security.