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Changing The Locks After Moving In
You have just moved in, you have a handful of keys from the agent, and no idea who else still has one.
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What's happening?
Every set of keys handed over on completion day is a set someone chose to give back. The ones that matter are the ones nobody mentions: keys with previous tenants, a cleaner, a builder, a dog walker, an ex-partner, a neighbour holding a spare, or simply copies cut over years and forgotten. You have no way to audit them, which is why changing the locks is the standard advice on moving in rather than a precaution for nervous people. It is also the moment to find out what is actually on the doors, because it is the one time you will look at every external door in the house at once — and new owners routinely discover a back door on an unbranded cylinder or a garage door with no meaningful lock at all.
What usually causes it?
- Keys still held by previous tenants, owners or their family
- Copies cut for cleaners, builders, gardeners or dog walkers over the years
- A spare left with a neighbour or a friend of the previous occupant
- Letting agents or management companies holding keys from an earlier tenancy
- An estate agent's key safe or lockbox left on the property
- Locks fitted years ago that predate current standards
- A back, side or garage door still on its original builder's lock
Is it dangerous?
The risk is access rather than injury, but it is real and it is unknowable — that is what makes it worth acting on. Insurers also expect reasonable security, and a house where an unknown number of keys are in circulation is not that. If a key safe or lockbox has been left on the wall, remove it or change its code before anything else.
Can I fix it myself?
Do the survey yourself. Walk round every external door, including the garage, the side gate and any outbuilding, and note the lock on each one and whether it carries a Kitemark. Count the keys you were given and work out which doors they open. Where a lock is a straightforward cylinder swap, that is within reach for a confident DIYer — but the cylinder must be the right length for the door, and a lock that has to meet a standard for your policy needs to be Kitemarked, not just new.
When should you call a locksmith?
Call a locksmith in the first week rather than at the six-month mark. It is one visit, it covers every door, and it is the point at which you can also have the doors keyed alike so one key opens the house. If a door has an unapproved euro cylinder, this is the moment to move to an anti-snap one rather than paying twice.
What will the locksmith actually do?
- Survey every external door, garage and outbuilding and record what is fitted
- Replace cylinders and locks so no previously issued key works anywhere on the property
- Fit anti-snap cylinders sized flush to the door where euro cylinders are in use
- Bring doors up to the standard your insurance requires, including keyless egress where needed
- Key the doors alike where you want one key, and hand over the full set with nothing outstanding
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