How is this not illegal?

eddddy

somerandomusername said

How is this not illegal?

If it were a new block of flats built today, having a door on an escape route which required an escaping person to have a key to open it would probably be a breach of current building regulations.

So I guess that your block of flats was built some time ago, before that requirement was added to building regulations.

(There is no legal requirement to update existing buildings to meet new building regulations. But maybe it's sensible to do that in this case.)

As current building regulations don't allow escape route doors that require a key, I think it's extremely unlikely that an insurance company would insist that escape route doors must have a key.

SiliconChip

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81925171#Comment_81925171

I use the hook by the door method, I used to leave the key in the door but having had to fork out £70 for a locksmith when the door unexpectedly closed on me while I was outside I haven't done that again!

somerandomusername

I'm genuinely quite shocked both at how common everyone says this is, and also how chill everyone seems to be about it lol.

For me this is the first home I have ever been in that requires the key in order to unlock the front door from [b]the inside[/b]. In any case just for my own peace of mind a thumb turn is what I'm going with. As for insurance, as long as I'm insured against fire / water damage etc that's ok.

I have barely anything of value worth stealing anyway.

Emmia

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81925748#Comment_81925748

Is this your place (you own it) or rented? Personally, I think if you're unhappy with the lock arrangement, then you should replace it (if you own) or ask your landlord to replace it.

somerandomusername

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81925758#Comment_81925758

It's mine, I just bought it. Yeah I've got a locksmith coming tomorrow to change it for a mortice euro profile.

Bigphil1474

Having a lock that needs a key on both sides is far better IMO. You are far less likely to be in a fire, than you are to go out the door without your key and then be locked out. If your door doesn't lock without a key you are very unlikely to be locked out. Weighing one risk against the other, I'd keep the key lock option.

We used to live in a through mid terrace, and we'd keep the keys at the bottom of the stairs in the middle of the house. If there was a fire blocking the front, we could go to the back, and vice versa. Currently we have an inner and outer lockable front door so I tend to leave the key in the inner door.

Worth thinking about how a scallywag could get in and how you prevent it (whether you are there or not). Magnets on a pole can fish for keys, devices to turn a thumb lock aren't unheard of. Flats are far less likely to be burgled than houses though, so that's a positive.

Emmia

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81926144#Comment_81926144

We have a thumb turn and a night latch - no letterbox though which makes turning the thumb turn, or opening the night latch from outside very difficult.

WIAWSNB

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81926144#Comment_81926144

I don't understand - with either lock option, key or thumb-turn - if you go out and slam the door behind you, you are surely 'locked' out. For either, you will require a key to get back in. The door will be 'locked' but not double-locked, so it should be relatively easy to force the bolt in against its spring.

I guess there is more risk of leaving the flat sans key, since it wasn't needed to open the door on the inside, but still. In any event, it makes sense to have a spare key secreted somewhere - in your car, garage, with a neighbour, at work, with a friend…

I helped a relative fill out a house insurance policy a week ago, and the list of 'front door locks' to choose from included 'key-operated nightlatch' - the diagram made it clear it was referring to the wee round 'Yale' key type lock, with a manual handle on the inside. And that - astonishingly - was all the house had. Not a problem - really cheap insurance (mind you, it was just 'buildings', so 'contents' may be more concerned about door security?) Even more astonishing when I drilled through the original Yale in two minutes.

The was no mention, or requirement, that the lock needed to be 'key-operated' on both sides.

If you have further concerns about security, you could fit a basket or box to catch your mail on the inside.

Albermarle

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81926144#Comment_81926144

With our wooden front door, there is a traditional Yale type latch. Opened with a lever from inside and a key from outside.

Then we have a mortice lock, needing a key from both sides. We only lock this at night. I think this is ( or was) a pretty standard arrangement for a wooden door.

So if you go out without your keys, you are still locked out even if the mortice lock remains unlocked.

We leave the keys on a high stand next to the door, I can not see how anyone could get them from outside.

Although I understand the OPs ( and others) worries, it has never worried me that much. On the other hand I do patrol the house before going to bed !

somerandomusername

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81926234#Comment_81926234

There are simple tricks to get around this, one is to simply glue a few cm thick piece of wood to the inside of the letter box so when the letter box is pushed open, it only opens about 50% of the way, enough for letters to get through but certainly not an arm.