Burglary repairs
Burglary Repairs in Boston
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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 think someone may still be inside, or the property looks unsafe, do not go in: call 999. Once you know it is safe, call the police before you call anyone else, including us. The police need to say when work at the entry point may begin, so nothing there should be secured, boarded, repaired or cleaned before then.
Big Locksmiths Boston repairs the damage and makes the property secure again, 24 hours a day. You can ring for advice before the police have finished, so you know what happens next.
Before Touching Anything
Most people want to put things back in order the moment they walk in and find the place disturbed. That is understandable, but the first hours are when forensic evidence is easiest to recover, and every item moved or wiped makes it harder.
A few specific things help far more than a general warning to touch nothing:
- Take photographs, but from a distance rather than close up.
- Leave any handles, drawers and surfaces that have obviously been disturbed exactly as they are.
- Do not touch the door that was forced, the window that was broken or anything else at the point of entry.
- Steer clear of broken glass and debris near the way in.
- Leave anything the intruder may have dropped where it lies.
- Hold off using the bathroom: intruders sometimes use it, and they may have left evidence behind.
Your photographs of the entry point and every room that was affected will be useful to the police and to your insurer alike.
When Can You Secure the Property?
Here is the dilemma in plain terms. The police want the scene left alone so that evidence survives. Your insurer will expect you to keep the property from standing open. And because intruders sometimes come back for what they could not carry the first time, a property left unsecured is at real risk of a second visit.
How do you square that? By asking, not guessing. Ring the police and ask whether forensics are attending, when they expect to attend, and when the entry point can be worked on. If they are attending soon, wait. If they cannot get there until the next day, contact the police non-emergency line and ask if the property can be secured now; no work begins without their go-ahead.
Ask for another reason too: any locksmith working on a door has to handle it, and that can disturb marks at the entry point, gloves or not. As for the insurance side, most insurers expect to be told promptly, so check your policy wording rather than waiting until the repair is done.
Repaired Properly Afterwards, Secure Tonight
Late at night, aim for a secure home, with work starting only after police permission. The entrance’s condition determines whether the initial visit might include repairing it straight away, replacing a component or fitting temporary boarding. Some damaged doors and windows can be put right on that visit. For other entrances, temporary security is put in place pending suitable parts being located or separate work on the glazing, door or frame being organised.
After that comes the permanent job, once the police are done, your insurer knows and any parts have been sourced. Before either stage you are told which one you are at and what it involves. Any extra repair, part or return visit is talked through separately, and the work and its price are confirmed before the next stage starts. For more, see emergency boarding up and lock replacement.
Upgrading Security After a Break-In
None of this needs deciding while you are still dealing with the aftermath. When you are ready, the break-in itself is a guide to what to improve, because it shows how the property's security held up and where it did not. Begin at the entry point. Forced entry may have affected the lock, cylinder, keeps or surrounding frame, or several together, and reviewing the full entrance shows whether replacing one part is sufficient.
If the door was timber and was forced, look at BS 3621: suitable timber doors may use qualifying locks certified to that standard, and some policies specify it. If a cylinder was snapped, TS 007 ratings and SS 312 Diamond certification are the relevant marks; euro cylinders and compatible security hardware may carry the first, and qualifying cylinders may carry the second. These ratings apply to particular products or hardware combinations, so they say nothing about the complete door and do not guarantee compliance with every insurance policy.
An extensive upgrade is not automatically required, and a like-for-like replacement is a sensible option if you prefer it. Some of it may be covered by the claim. Where an insurer, landlord or managing agent has set a written requirement, ask them to confirm the specification in writing before choosing a lock for compliance. The guides to BS 3621 door locks and anti-snap locks go further.
What We Repair After Break-Ins
After a burglary, the lock is usually only part of the story; the door and nearby hardware can be damaged by the same force. These are the areas a repair typically covers.
Windows and locks for windows
Forced sashes and broken locking mechanisms are repaired or replaced. If forced entry has broken the glass or damaged a sealed glazing unit, a glazier will be needed, and that is said plainly at the outset.
Doors and door frames
Look beyond the lock to the keep, strike plate, door edge and frame, since damage around the lock often spreads there. Leaving a split frame unrepaired leaves the weak point in place. Bigger joinery or structural repairs may need a carpenter or door specialist, with the door secured in the meantime.
Cylinders and locks
Snapped, drilled or broken locks are replaced with an equivalent or upgraded model to suit the door and your policy. Preventing stolen property keys from working may require replacement of those locks.
uPVC and composite door mechanism
A forced door of this kind can have a damaged multipoint mechanism even where it looks fine, and it may need attention even if it still closes.
Boarding up where needed
When a permanent repair cannot be done straight away, boarding closes off the damaged opening, and follow-up work is arranged once the entrance is secure.
There is more detail on uPVC door lock repair and.
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.
Locksmith pricing
Burglary Repairs Across Boston
Break-in repairs are attended for homeowners, tenants, landlords and business premises across Boston, because a damaged door cannot be left open overnight once the police have said work may start.
That covers Trinity, Bargate, Skirbeck, Wyberton, Staniland and Haven Village, with every postcode in PE21 and the parts of PE20 around Boston included. Lincolnshire Police recorded 245 burglaries across the Boston built-up area in the 12 months from September 2025 to August 2026 (data.police.uk). Report a break-in to Lincolnshire Police on 101 or online at lincs.police.uk and get a crime reference before you claim.
Source: Lincolnshire Police records published on data.police.uk (OGL v3), Sep 2025 to Aug 2026. Counts are anonymised records mapped inside the Boston built-up area, not a measure of the risk to any one home.
See all areas we cover.
What affects the cost?
Service required, time of attendance, lock and door type, labour and parts.
What Happens When You Call Us
The process is short and predictable.
- Start by telling us what was damaged and whether the police have authorised work at the entry point; their permission is needed before it begins.
- The price is given on the phone, together with an honest arrival estimate of we aim to be with you in around 30 minutes, though it can take longer depending on where our nearest locksmith is.
Locksmith pricing
What Does Burglary Repair Cost?
Burglary repairs are priced job by job rather than from a fixed list. The cost rests on the damage, the entrance involved and whether the work is done immediately or as a follow-up.
What affects the price
- How much damage there is, and what kind
- Repair now, or temporary securing first
- The locks, cylinders or components that need fitting
- Any compatible parts that must be sourced
- Normal working hours or out of hours
How you are charged
The call price follows your description and holds unless the job differs on site; any change is explained before work begins. There is no separate call-out charge; you pay for the labour, parts and work agreed with you. 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.
Emergency and planned locksmith services
Call Big Locksmiths Boston
Calls are answered 24 hours a day with no call-out charge. You can ring for advice even if the police have not finished, and you will be told what happens next.
- Phone: 01205 601044
01205 601044
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I call the police or a locksmith first?
The police. Dial 999 where the break-in may still be going on, someone might be inside or a person is in immediate danger, and use the appropriate non-emergency police channel in every other case. They will give you a crime reference number and can say whether the entrance must be left untouched before repairs or temporary boarding. If the property cannot be secured, tell them that too. Then contact us, at any hour, even for advice before they have finished.
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?
Repairs may be covered, subject to your insurer's decision. What the insurer will pay depends on the incident, the policy conditions and the repairs needed. Get in touch promptly to check its evidence requirements and any authorisation. File your crime reference with permitted photographs, correspondence from the insurer and repair bills.
Do I need to change my locks if nothing was damaged?
Yes, if the intruder left with any keys. Those keys still open the door, damaged lock or not, and anyone holding them can come back. That makes changing the affected locks worthwhile, and the same goes for locks whose spare keys were kept in the house where the intruder could reach them. If all keys are present and no lock was forced, your locks may be fine, and you will be told so.
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?
Yes, it does sometimes happen. An intruder may return within days for whatever they could not carry away first time. That makes prompt securing sensible once the police allow work, followed by a proper repair at the entry point rather than weeks of temporary boarding. It is a practical point to plan around, not a reason to be frightened tonight.
My uPVC door was forced but it still closes. Is it damaged?
It could be, so have it checked. Forcing a uPVC door frequently damages the multipoint mechanism even where nothing looks wrong, and a common sign, days later, is a handle that refuses to lift. The fact that it still closes is not proof that it is undamaged. Where force was applied at the lock, treat the mechanism as having taken the strain.
What if the frame is damaged as well as the lock?
That is a very common combination, since a door forced at the lock usually splits the frame around the keep. Fixing the lock without the frame leaves the weakness exactly where it was. Repairable frames are sorted at the same time. If the frame needs more than one visit allows, the property is secured first and the frame completed on return, or by a carpenter or door specialist if major joinery is required.
Still have a question or need urgent assistance? Call 01205 601044, tell us what has happened and receive a current arrival estimate.