Fresh Keys, Familiar Locks: A Move-In Door Audit for New-Build UK Homes

There's a strange assumption that comes with a new-build. Everything is new, so everything must be good. In reality, a developer's job is to deliver a door that closes, seals and passes building control. Security beyond that is often a matter of what the specification happened to include — and specifications get value-engineered.

None of this is a reason to panic. Most new-build doors in the UK are perfectly reasonable, and the rise of PAS 24 as a standard for external doorsets has improved things considerably. But reasonable and well set up are different things, and the first fortnight in a new home is the easiest time to check.

The door looks the part — then you look closer

Composite doors are the default on most new estates now. They're thick, they're heavy, they look expensive. Inside them sits a lock cylinder, and that cylinder is where the actual security lives.

Builders buy cylinders in bulk. Sometimes they're a decent three-star TS007 model. Sometimes they're a mid-range basic unit that meets the letter of the spec and nothing more. Occasionally — and this is the one that catches people out — the door has a thumbturn on the inside, which is convenient and comfortable and, depending on the model, potentially the weak point.

You can usually tell what you've got by looking at the cylinder face. A three-star rated cylinder carries a Kitemark and a TS007 marking, often with three stars stamped or printed on it. If you can see nothing at all, that's your answer: assume it's basic and plan accordingly.

Start with the cylinder

Take five minutes with a torch and look at the outside face of the lock. Ask yourself:

• Does it sit flush, or proud, or recessed? A cylinder sticking out beyond the door face is easier to attack. A well-fitted one sits flush or slightly recessed within the handle furniture.
• Is there a mark on it? Kitemark, TS007, three stars, a brand name. Anything is better than nothing.
• Is the handle furniture sturdy? Cheap handles flex. Grabbing one and giving it a firm, sensible pull tells you a lot.
• Is there a letterbox within arm's reach of the lock? On some doors, a hand through the letterbox can reach the thumbturn. Worth knowing.

The good news is that euro cylinders are a standard component and swapping one is a genuinely straightforward job for a locksmith. If your cylinder turns out to be basic, upgrading to a three-star anti-snap unit is usually a modest cost — and it's the single most effective change most new-build owners can make.

Thumbturns, letterboxes and the two-minute test

Thumbturn cylinders are brilliant if you need to get out of a burning building quickly. They're also, on some models, the part an intruder will attack, particularly via a letterbox or a glazed panel beside the door.

Lock with a key on both sides is more secure but worse in a fire. Three-star thumbturns with a break-off section try to solve both problems. If you have a thumbturn and it isn't marked to a recognised standard, it's worth getting an opinion on it rather than assuming.

A quick test while you're at it: with the door shut and locked, can you reach through the letterbox and touch the thumbturn or the handle spindle? If yes, flag it.

Alignment: the quiet problem

Here's the thing nobody tells new homeowners. A door can be locked and still be misaligned. If the door has dropped slightly on its hinges, the multi-point lock may engage only partly — you'll hear it click, but the hooks and rollers won't be fully seated in the keeps.

You'll often spot this by feel: the handle needs a lift to lock, the key is stiff, or the door catches on the frame at the top corner. Settling is normal in a new build during the first year, and developers will usually adjust it under warranty if you report it early.

If your door has adjustable hinges, the developer's maintenance team can raise or lower the leaf. Don't do it yourself with a screwdriver and optimism the week you move in.

Fire doors and flats: don't touch before you ask

If you've bought a flat, your front door is almost certainly a fire door. That changes everything. Fire door hardware — the closer, the intumescent strips, the hinges, the lock — is part of a certified assembly. Swapping components without checking can compromise the door's rating and, in some buildings, breach the lease or the fire risk assessment for the whole block.

Before changing a single screw on a flat entrance door, ask the managing agent or developer what's permitted. Many will allow a like-for-like cylinder upgrade; fewer will allow wholesale hardware changes. Get it in writing. This is not the area to improvise.

Standards, insurance and the paperwork

Contents insurance frequently demands that external doors have a lock to a stated standard. On a new build, you probably already meet it — but probably isn't good enough when you're claiming.

Dig out the handover pack. Look for:

• A door specification sheet or a Secured by Design reference
• The PAS 24 certification for the doorset, if it exists
• The cylinder manufacturer and rating
• Any warranty terms covering door hardware

Photograph the lock, the door edge and the certificate if you have one. Keep it in a folder. If your insurer ever asks, you'll have the answer in seconds.

What to raise with the developer — and when

The first two weeks are your window. Snagging lists are normal, expected and taken seriously during this period. Locks and doors belong on them.

Raise these specifically:

• The door needs lifting to lock, or the key is stiff
• Any draught or daylight visible around the frame
• A cylinder that sits proud of the door face
• Missing or unbranded hardware compared with the specification
• Anything you can reach through the letterbox that you shouldn't be able to

Keep it factual and photograph everything. Developers respond better to "the key requires excessive force to turn, see attached video" than to a general complaint about security.

Your move-in audit, in order

1. Photograph every external lock and door before you move furniture in.
2. Check each cylinder for a Kitemark or TS007 marking.
3. Test every door: lock it, unlock it, listen for the multi-point engaging fully.
4. Note any stiffness, drop or draught and add it to the snagging list.
5. Check the letterbox reach and any glazing beside the lock.
6. Read the insurance policy's door-lock clause.
7. Get permission before touching a flat entrance fire door.
8. Only then consider a cylinder upgrade — and use a locksmith who'll document what they fitted.

A new-build isn't a security guarantee, but it is a good starting point. A morning's checking now means the door you thought was solid turns out to actually be solid — and that's a much nicer feeling than finding out the other way round.