Do you know what types of locks are fitted to your doors? It may not be a matter of interest to you as long as the locks are doing their jobs adequately. As the matter of fact, it is certainly very important to know lock types since they directly address your safety as well as protection of your possessions.
Likewise, lock types are some of the most important aspects when it comes to insurance issues. Most insurers clearly indicate the standards of locks and warn that all the existing locks need to meet safety standards.
So, even if you are satisfied with your current home insurance policy, there is nothing wrong to take measures to improve your home security by using home-insurance approved locks for all of your doors and windows.
Nearly all insurance policy forms have questions as to lock safety. Some of insurance companies also offer discount if you can verify that your doors or windows locks meet the standards. If you can’t, you may need to pay a higher premium rate. So, how can you check if your locks meet current insurance standards?
The British Standard Institution (BSI) has certified standard locks in order to set a benchmark to ensure the quality of products and services. BSI- certified locks come with a kite marked on the products and their packages. Also, there are a few standard numbers that are given on certified products, such as, BS3621 or BS10621.
BS3621 is the most popular BSI standard. The lock will be deadlocked while the key will work both side of the gate. This makes gaining access or exiting without a key difficult. The BS10621 standard, on the other hand, is used for the locks with the capability to open and lock from outside only. However, it is possible to open the door from inside with using the key.
Accordingly, it is vital to make sure that the lock you buy has the BSO kite mark as well as any of the standard numbers.
