Two things you should do if you get locked out of your home late at night

Arriving home late at night only to realise that you have lost your keys and been locked out of your house can be a nightmarish situation. Here are two things you should do if this ever happens to you.

Call a locksmith

Hiring a locksmith to open your door and provide you with a new key will, of course, cost money. Additionally, you may need to wait quite some time for the locksmith to arrive. Because of this, you might find yourself tempted to try to break into your own home, either by climbing through an open window or breaking a window. However, in almost all cases, this is a terrible idea.

If you try to break open a window, the broken glass could cut your forearm or your hand. If the wound is severe, you may end up having to take a trip to your local Accident and Emergency department.

If one of the windows in your home is open and you try to climb through it, there is a risk that you could get stuck or hurt yourself as you tumble onto the floor after getting inside. Furthermore, if a passing pedestrian, neighbour or motorist spots you as you attempt to break into your own home, they might mistake you for a burglar and call the police.

As such, if you don't want to endure any unnecessary pain or embarrassment, it's far better to pay a locksmith to handle this task, rather than to take a 'DIY' approach.

Find a safe place to wait

It's quite possible that you may have to wait for an hour or more for the locksmith to arrive at your home, depending on how busy they happen to be on the night that you call them.

Whilst waiting around for an hour during the day is usually perfectly safe, the same cannot be said of standing around outside late at night. If you remain outside your home on your own for a long period of time and you live in an area with a high crime rate, there is a risk that you could encounter an unsavoury character.

If possible, you should try to find somewhere safe to wait until the locksmith shows up. If you know your neighbours quite well, it might be worth knocking on their door and asking them if you can wait inside their house.

If not, try to remain somewhere well-lit and busy. If there are any late-night fast-food restaurants, shops or cafes nearby, it might be a good idea to wait in one of them (if you decide to do this, make sure to tell the locksmith where you are).

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