Burglary repairs
Burglary Repairs in Lancing
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- 24-hour emergency cover
- No call-out charge
- Price agreed before work starts
Been Broken Into? Here Is What Matters First
If you have been broken into in Lancing and think someone may still be inside, or the property looks unsafe, stay out and call 999. Once you know it is safe, report the break-in to Sussex Police on 101 or online at https://www.sussex.police.uk before you ring anyone else, including us.
After that, L.M.N Locksmiths Lancing repairs the damage and makes the property secure again, 24 hours a day. You can phone us for advice even before the police have finished, so you know what happens next.
First, Before You Touch Anything
After a break-in, the first instinct is to check what is missing and start clearing up. Give it a little time. Forensic evidence is easiest to recover in the first hours and is destroyed by handling, so the less that is moved, the better.
Six things to hold off on
- Touching the point of entry, such as a forced door or broken window.
- Moving anything the intruder could have dropped.
- Crossing glass or debris near the entry point.
- Using the bathroom, where intruders sometimes go and may leave evidence.
- Handling drawers, handles or surfaces that have clearly been disturbed.
- Taking close-up photographs; stand back and take them from a distance.
Why the photos matter
A record of the entry point and each affected room helps the police and supports your insurance claim. For the wider picture, see the full guide to what to do after a burglary.
When Is It Possible to Secure Your Property?
What do you do when the police say leave it but the property needs securing? Follow their instructions and ask when work may start. The police want the scene left alone. Your insurer will expect that the property is not left open. A property broken into once is also at real risk of being targeted again, since intruders sometimes come back for what they could not carry.
Ask the police two things: whether forensics are attending, and when they will allow work on the entry point. If they will be there soon, wait for them. If the earliest they can come is the next day, ring the police non-emergency line and ask for permission to secure the property now; leave it untouched until they agree.
Gloves or not, a locksmith working on a door will handle it, and that can disturb marks at the entry point, which is precisely why asking the police first is better than assuming. On the insurance side, most insurers expect to be told promptly, so check your policy wording for what yours asks.
What We Repair After Break-Ins
The repair is shaped by how the property was entered. Since forced entry can affect the lock, the door and the hardware around it, each of these is checked in turn.
Doors and door frames
Damage around the lock can extend to the keep, the strike plate, the door edge or the surrounding frame, and a door forced at the lock usually shows some of it. A repair that ignores the frame leaves the weak point. Where major joinery or structural work is needed, a carpenter or door specialist may be required, and the door is secured temporarily first.
Cylinders and locks
Snapped cylinders, drilled locks and broken mortice cases are replaced, equivalent or upgraded to suit the door and your policy. If keys to the property were stolen, changing the affected locks may be necessary so those keys stop working, whether or not the locks were damaged.
uPVC and composite door mechanism
A forced door of this type can have damage inside the mechanism even when it looks intact. It may need attention even if it still closes.
Windows and locks for windows
Forced sashes, handles and locking mechanisms are the locksmith's share of the work. Broken glass and damaged sealed units are for a glazier, which we will say plainly.
Boarding up where needed
When a permanent repair cannot be completed immediately, temporary boarding closes off the damaged opening, and follow-up work is arranged once the entrance is secure.
Secure Tonight and Repaired Properly Afterwards
Burglary repairs usually happen in two stages, and knowing that takes some of the pressure off. Work needs police permission; the first visit makes the property safe to leave and sleep in. Sometimes the entrance can be repaired there and then. Sometimes it needs temporary securing, with a temporary lock or boarding, while compatible parts are sourced or a glazier, door or frame specialist is lined up. Which of those applies depends on the condition of the entrance: an immediate repair, a replacement component or boarding.
The second stage is the permanent repair. It follows once the police have finished, the insurer has been told and any parts needed are in hand. Additional work, a replacement part or a return visit is discussed with you separately, and the work and price are confirmed before that next stage begins, so you always know where you stand.
Upgrading Security Following a Break-In
When the property is secure again and you have had time to think, it is worth looking at what the break-in revealed. The entry point is the natural starting place. Forced entry may affect the lock, cylinder, keeps, frame or several of them, and assessing the whole entrance is how you find out whether one part needs replacing or the related hardware does too. That decision needs to take account of any requirement set out in writing by your insurer, landlord or managing agent.
The useful step is to choose the standard that answers the method used. A timber door that was forced: suitable timber doors may use qualifying locks certified to BS 3621, and some policies specify that. A uPVC or composite door with a snapped cylinder: qualifying cylinders may carry SS 312 Diamond certification, and euro cylinders and compatible security hardware may carry TS 007 ratings. These ratings apply to specific products or hardware combinations; they do not certify a complete door or promise compliance with every policy.
You are not obliged to go further than the damage requires, and like for like is always open to you. Some upgrades may be covered by the claim, but ask the insurer or property manager to confirm any required specification in writing before choosing a lock for compliance. See BS 3621 door locks explained and anti-snap locks explained.
Locksmith pricing
What Do Repairs After a Burglary Cost?
What will it cost? That depends on three things above all: the damage, the entrance affected and whether the job can be done now or needs a follow-up visit. In more detail, the price reflects:
- What was damaged and how badly.
- Whether a repair is possible or temporary securing comes first.
- Which locks, cylinders or other parts are needed.
- Whether compatible parts need to be sourced.
- Whether the visit takes place during or outside normal working hours.
Describe the damage on the phone and you will be given a price there and then; it stands unless the job differs on site, with any change explained before the work goes ahead. No call-out fee is added. You pay for the work carried out, any parts needed, and VAT. Rates outside Monday to Friday, 7am to 6pm, are higher, but the call-out itself is never charged.
What affects the cost?
Service required, time of attendance, lock and door type, labour and parts.
Locksmith pricing
Insurance Claim Paperwork
A burglary claim usually rests on a small bundle of documents. Requirements do vary, so check your policy, contact your insurer promptly and ask which evidence your claim needs. Most insurers will want:
- the police crime reference number;
- photographs taken in line with what the police advised;
- correspondence from the insurer;
- invoices for both the temporary securing and the completed repairs.
Put it with the crime reference number and photographs so everything is in one place. Where your insurer requests particular information about the damage, the repair or the locks fitted, tell us before work begins. Remember that your insurer will decide what is covered under the policy. For more on what to expect from a locksmith, see how to choose a trustworthy locksmith.
What affects the cost?
Service required, time of attendance, lock and door type, labour and parts.
Burglary Repairs Across Lancing
We attend break-in repairs for homeowners, tenants, landlords and business premises across Lancing, and an open door is not something to leave overnight. Work at the entry point starts only when the police say it may begin; if they cannot attend tonight, ring 101 and ask whether the property may be secured now.
We work in North Lancing, South Lancing and Lower Cokeham, every postcode in BN15, the parts of BN43 around Lancing and Sompting, which has its own page. North Lancing is mostly houses (Census 2021, ONS), so the damage is usually to a household's own front or back door.
For context only, Sussex Police recorded 21 burglaries across the Lancing built-up area in the 12 months from September 2025 to August 2026, alongside 107 reports of criminal damage (data.police.uk). Lancing and its surroundings are home to around 23,000 usual residents (Census 2021, ONS, output areas approximated to the built-up area).
Source: Sussex Police records published on data.police.uk (OGL v3), Sep 2025 to Aug 2026. Counts are anonymised records mapped inside the Lancing built-up area, not a measure of the risk to any one home.
See all areas we cover.
What Happens When You Make a Call
Nothing about the call is complicated.
- Let us know what has been damaged, and whether the police have said work may begin, as their permission is needed before the entry point is touched.
- We quote a price on the call and give you an honest idea of arrival, we aim to be with you in around 30 minutes, though it can take longer depending on where our nearest locksmith is.
Emergency and planned locksmith services
Call L.M.N Locksmiths Lancing
Ring 01903 377061 when you are ready: calls are answered 24 hours a day with no call-out charge, and you can ask what happens next even if the police have not finished.
- Phone: 01903 377061
01903 377061
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I call the police or a locksmith first?
Police first. If someone could still be inside, the break-in may be ongoing or anyone is in immediate danger, dial 999. If not, use the appropriate non-emergency police channel. Ask them whether the damaged door or window needs leaving untouched before any repair or boarding, and let them know if you cannot secure the property. Once you have their crime reference number, ring us; calls are taken 24 hours a day, including for advice while the police are still involved.
Can I secure my door before the police have been?
Possibly, but ask the police before you do anything. A short wait makes sense if forensics are attending soon, because work on the door can disturb marks at the entry point. If they cannot attend until the following day, ring the police non-emergency line to ask whether securing can start now. Any work at the entry point must wait for their go-ahead.
Will my insurance cover the repairs?
Payment depends on your cover, and the insurer will confirm its decision. Tell it about the damage promptly rather than waiting for completed repairs. Ask which evidence and approvals are needed for the particular circumstances and work. Hold on to the crime reference, permitted photographs, claim correspondence and repair invoices.
Do I need to change my locks if nothing was damaged?
If keys were taken, yes. Anyone holding them can come back, and an undamaged lock is beside the point. Changing the affected locks means those keys no longer work. It is also worth doing where the intruder had access to spare keys kept in the house. If no keys are missing and no lock was forced, the locks may well be fine, and you will be told if that is what the check finds.
Can everything be fixed the same night?
Not necessarily, and there is no need for it to be. After the police give permission, the first visit is about security: temporary locks or boarding where a full repair must wait, so the property is safe to leave and sleep in. The lasting repair follows when the police have finished and the parts are in. Each stage, and its price, is explained to you before work starts.
Could they come back?
It can happen, which is a reason to secure the property promptly after police permission. Intruders sometimes come back to the same address within days, often for items they could not carry the first time. The calm, practical answer is a proper repair at the entry point, rather than temporary boarding left in place for weeks.
My uPVC door was forced but it still closes. Is it damaged?
Possibly. A door that still shuts can still have a damaged mechanism. With forced uPVC doors, the multipoint mechanism inside is often affected even if the door and frame appear intact, and the fault can surface days later as a handle that will not lift. If the door was forced at the lock, assume the mechanism took the strain and get it looked at.
What if the frame is damaged as well as the lock?
It is common for both to be damaged, because force at the lock usually splits the frame around the keep. Swapping the lock alone would not remove the weak point. If the frame can be repaired on the spot, that is done together with the lock. If it needs more work than one visit allows, the entrance is secured first and the frame completed afterwards, with a carpenter or door specialist for major joinery.
Still have a question or need urgent assistance? Call 01903 377061, tell us what has happened and receive a current arrival estimate.