robbed whilst working at a clients home

green_tree_2

Thanks for all your advice, though i am suprised and sadden that some people on this forum can be so short sighted and make such flippent & ill thought out comments. When decorating, it is ESSENTIAL to have the odd door or window slightly open to let paint dry and more importantly for health reasons. It was not as though i left the door wide open whilst i popped down to the local shop now is it?
Its just a sad state of affairs that now i cannot take my eyes off an open window or door whilst i do my job properly, in case an opportunist thief takes the liberty of creeping in and helping themselves to whatever they fancy.

Debt_Free_Chick

Unfortunately, this kind of opportunistic theft is all too common. Chances are that this was completely unplanned and the thief just "took a chance" seeing the door open. He/She (!) may well have guessed that any tradesman would be busy working and not notice their entry to the property.

The only thing I can see you doing in a similar situation is to try and plan the work so that you can do work near to the open door for a few hours e.g. paint the door, prop it open then paint the room that the door opens on to. This is genuinely meant to be a helpful suggestion for the future and, of course, it might not be possible depending on the work you have to do. In that case, I think you have to warn the client that the door will need to be left open and the property will not be fully secure. They can then decide to "be around" if they are concerned.

The only other suggestions that might deter a burglar is to place a door wedge (or two) inside the door - enough to leave a gap, but it would prevent the door being pushed open from outside. Or place something behind the door e.g. a small table and then something on the table to create a noise if the door were pushed open, knocking the object off the table.

Finally - report the incident to the Police in case there are PCSOs in that area. And consider whether claiming off your insurance is worth it, or not.

HTH

PasturesNew

green_tree wrote: »

Thanks for all your advice, though i am suprised and sadden that some people on this forum can be so short sighted and make such flippent & ill thought out comments. When decorating, it is ESSENTIAL to have the odd door or window slightly open to let paint dry and more importantly for health reasons. It was not as though i left the door wide open whilst i popped down to the local shop now is it?
Its just a sad state of affairs that now i cannot take my eyes off an open window or door whilst i do my job properly, in case an opportunist thief takes the liberty of creeping in and helping themselves to whatever they fancy.

This risk is a fact of life. I live alone and if I am in my garden sunbathing and just pop inside to go to the loo (by the back door), I lock the door behind me. And that was in an area with no particular risk, it's just something I do and think about. Opportunists are everywhere.

You'd not leave the keys in your ignition on a garage forecourt when paying for your petrol. I had a friend who did this on a motorway and lost their car.

You have to think in terms of risk analysis and simple things to minimise and potentially zero any risk. An open door or window is an invitation to a thief and always has been. There've been many advertising campaigns over the years about this - and warnings in the summer about not leaving a window open even if you're in the house. Many people have had their house robbed while they were in the garden because they left a ground floor window open somewhere. It's one of those things you have to plan round by default.

As has been said by DFC, it might be that it's better to pay the householder direct and not out of your insurance.

I had a handyman/decorator in my house and I would lock doors behind him when we were going from the back to the front. He would (rudely!) mock me for locking the back door when we went in, but as we'd then be going to the 2nd floor, at the front of the house, it was a risk. He shouldn't have mocked me; he was terminated. Home security is VERY important to a householder. It is essential to feel that your house is secure when it's entrusted to a workman of any type.

Good luck.

jenny74

Cat695 wrote: »

Did the house not have any windows?? I think you'll find their insurance will refuse to pay out if he tells them that you left the door open

Sorry but this is utter rubbish!

I have 10 years experience in Home insurance claims.

You claim from your policy for 'personal possessions' (assumming you have paid for this, as it is extra cover)

The client claims on his/her policy for their contents.

The only time the insurer may refuse to pay for your clients goods if you went out and left the door open/unlocked, as you were in, it wouldn't matter if the door was ajar or not.

You cannot claim off your clients insurer and vice versa because you can only insure you own things.

HTH

Jenny.

GDB2222

foxxymynx wrote: »

but shouldn't he have had the sence to be more vigilant since he had left the door open?

No. The householder knew he was hiring a one-man-band decorator - at least I assume that was the case. If there were a lot of valuables in the house some arrangement should have been made for extra security. Otherwise, you can't expect the painter to stand guard over every door or window for hours after it has been decorated.

Anyway, as jenny has said, the householder can probably claim on his home insurance (less the policy excess).

dubsey

On a similar note, we have a housekeeping team at work that clean the hotel bedrooms/corridors etc. They have a laundry room that is constantly in use throughout the day by all members of the team and some of us in reception sometimes need to get things from there. It has a door opening into the corridor and a fire exit next to the beer garden of the pub next door. The fire exit door is held open with a stool, just a tiny bit because all the washing machines and tumble driers are on all morning.

A month or so ago, the girls had all gone except the girl in charge that day. When she looked for her car keys in her bag, they had gone - unfortunately so had her car. The police have caught the guy and he said he just saw the keys at the top of her bag when he peeked into the room and took the car on impulse. The insurance company have been to our premises and absolutely refuse to pay out. The girl has a solicitor involved, but so far he has said he really doesn't think it will go anywhere because the thief had the keys end of, even though he entered premises and took them.

So it may be that your problem is similar, if it was only your phone I think you could end up writing it off as experience and do something differently next time.

TotallyBroke

Dubsey, they may also be refusing to pay out because you (as in all the staff and company) have broken the law yourselves.
It is illegal to prop open any fire door with anything, be it a stool or even a fire extinguisher (as so many do).

hethmar

Poor bloke - doing his job to the best of his ability - its obviously not his fault if a low life opportunist did this. If you are working on a house you cant keep a watch out on every door and window - thats ridiculous.

Good luck, hope it works out ok for you.

withabix

TotallyBroke wrote: »

Dubsey, they may also be refusing to pay out because you (as in all the staff and company) have broken the law yourselves.
It is illegal to prop open any fire door with anything, be it a stool or even a fire extinguisher (as so many do).

That relates to an INTERNAL fire door, so that the closed door can slow down the spread of a fire by acting as a fire break.

You can leave an external fire door open - ie one which goes from a building direct to the outside. To state anything else is just nonsense.

What you can't do is block it, obstruct it or lock it such that it cannot be opened with a push bar.

Ivrytwr3

Yes, he has to leave the door open. That is a given. However, as HE left the door open, it will be a calim against HIS insurance.

That is why he has insurance.