This guide is part of our series on home invasion in Switzerland: protecting your home and family.
When you want to protect your home better, a camera or alarm often comes to mind. Yet the first question is very practical: do the access points close properly and work as a coherent whole? A camera documents a situation; it does not repair a defective door.
For home invasion protection, this check must account for occupants being present. You need to be able to lock up, open to a visitor and leave the home without difficulty. Here is how to prepare a technical visit and obtain an understandable quote.
List all access points, not just the front door
Draw a simple plan for your own use. Do not put any codes on it. Mark external doors, patio doors, accessible windows, outbuildings and passages between the garage, cellar and living area. Add access used for deliveries or by people who work in your home.
The visit should reflect how the home is actually used. A side door used ten times a day may need more practical attention than a front door that rarely opens. The aim is not to guess where an intrusion would occur, but to check that every access point has an appropriate solution.
| Access point | Observation to record | Question for the professional |
|---|---|---|
| Front door | Difficulty closing, play, damaged parts or complicated controls. | Is a repair enough? Which elements need to be addressed together? |
| Patio and terrace doors | Frequent use, opening for pets or ventilation. | How can this use be preserved in the protection plan? |
| Accessible windows | Differences in condition and fittings between rooms. | Which assemblies warrant priority attention? |
| Garage and internal connecting door | Who holds a remote, and how do you know the door is fully closed? | What control is needed for each access point, including into the house? |
| Cellar and outbuilding | Rarely used or shared access. | Who is responsible, and who can authorise work? |
Assess a door as a complete assembly
Replacing the cylinder alone does not establish that the whole door reaches a given resistance level. Have the leaf, frame, fixings, locking components and their compatibility examined. The Swiss Crime Prevention brochure stresses the importance of correctly selected and installed equipment. Source: Swiss Crime Prevention, “À double tour!”.
Ask the quote to distinguish repairs, reinforcement and complete replacement. These three options do not necessarily solve the same problem. If the professional mentions a resistance class or certification, establish which assembly it applies to and which documents verify it.
Avoid turning a commercial designation into a promised protection time in your home. Put declared performance in the context of the product and its installation conditions. The expected result should be written clearly enough to verify at acceptance.
Windows and patio doors: address ventilation from the start
An acceptable solution must account for rooms you ventilate, summer heat and sleeping habits. If these uses are ignored, occupants may bypass the planned protection every day.
A useful discussion with the installer therefore starts with a description: “We want to ventilate this room at this time of day” or “we regularly use this door for the garden”. They can propose arrangements and explain what remains protected in each position. Do not assume a partly open window has the same protection as a closed and locked assembly.
A shutter, handle, glazing and alarm serve different purposes. Ask which weakness each element addresses and whether the planned change is compatible with the rest of the window. For detection, our article on partial alarm arming complements this assessment.
The garage raises two separate questions
The first concerns access from outside. The second concerns the passage into the home. Assess them separately, even if daily use makes them feel like one route.
Prepare answers to these questions in particular: who holds a remote control or badge? What happens if one goes missing? Can you check the closed state without going back outside? Does a maintenance visit change authorised access? These questions involve organisation as much as equipment.
Do not confuse the device that prevents a powered door from injuring someone with protection against intrusion. Ask the supplier to describe operational safety, locking and alert functions separately.
Preserve safe exit and fire safety
Reinforcement must not trap people inside. The Swiss Fire Prevention Information Centre notes in particular that building entrance doors on escape routes must open without a key in the direction of escape, and passages must remain clear. Source: CIPI.
Have modifications checked for compatibility with the requirements applicable to your building, especially fire doors and communal areas. Do not drill or alter a technical door based on generic online advice.
In a rented or jointly owned property, first identify who can authorise the work. The quote should allow the owner or property manager to understand the proposed change and its consequences.
Eight points to request in the quote
- The precise list of access points concerned.
- The findings that justify each intervention.
- A description of what is retained, repaired or replaced.
- Equipment references and documented performance.
- Compatibility with escape requirements and the building’s characteristics.
- Consequences for keys, badges, remotes and access rights.
- Planned tests, maintenance and warranties.
- Optional prices separated from the price of necessary corrections.
At acceptance, operate every access point with the people concerned. Request useful documents and an explanation of maintenance tasks. Report any difficulty closing or operating an item immediately; a written reservation is more useful than an explanation remembered approximately.
A prevention visit before major work
An external opinion can help prioritise needs. In the canton of Vaud, eligible individuals and organisations can request a free police security assessment. It examines the layout and measures suited to the location. Access the Vaud service.
To place the work in the overall project, see our home invasion protection guide. Improved access points can then be complemented by detection and an alert procedure suited to your family.
To coordinate this work with existing equipment and alert handling, our home invasion protection assessment for your villa helps define priorities. Work on doors and windows still needs to be specified with the relevant professionals.