What To Do After You’ve Had A Break-In

Coming home one day to find that there’s glass smashed all over the floor at the front of your house causes a gut-wrenching feeling. You never wouldn’t have thought it could happen to you. It feels like you’re stuck in a nightmare and you wish to wake up out of it. Caution takes hold, and you listen carefully to see if the burglars are still inside. After you hear nothing you walk inside and the glass underneath your feet crunches and cracks. Then you’ll do what everyone on the planet would do, check to see what they stole. It’s very common to feel numb and not know what to do. However, calling the police is a good start but they can only respond and not stop what has already happened. How could you possibly feel comfortable in your home again knowing that it was the target of a smash and grab thief? Don’t lose hope or begin to blame yourself. There’s not much you could have done, but now that you’re here at this point, you can do some things to make the home feel normal again.

Source Yannick Bammert

Keep kids away

You don’t want to alarm the kids and make them scared of their own home. Children that are young would perhaps do better if they were kept in the dark about the break-in. It’s right to cushion them from the reality of the situation and when you have time explain what occurred to them but not immediately. One thing is for certain you need to keep them away from all the broken glass on the floor. Sweep up the broken shards quickly so that no one is in danger of getting hurt. However, before you do this, take pictures of the home. Tell kids to stay in the car, and go around the home taking pictures of the places that were ransacked. Take a picture of how the glass splattered on the floor as well as police officers may be able to identify the technique they used to break in.

Credit Julian Tysoe

Putting the pieces back together

Although you may be emotionally charged at the sight of your home being destroyed, you shouldn’t let it consume you. Putting the pieces back together is the only option in moving forward. First of all, you need to replace the glass that was smashed be in the in the door or the windows. A company like Liverpool Glass does 24-hour emergency residential glass repair. So even if you arrive home late to see the damage done, you don’t have to sleep that night with a gaping hole in your home. Whether it be patterned glass that you normally find in front doors to obscure the view of those looking in or splash back painted glass for windows, they can service your needs. Replace the items that were stolen either by contacting your home insurance company or simply by something that is lesser for the time being. Better to have a cheap television that no television at all, so the kids can go about watching their shows as usual.


It’s a horrible and disgusting feeling when you come across your broken home. It’s entirely out of the clear blue sky, and it can freeze you in your tracks. Once you gather yourself, begin to put the pieces back and try and protect your kids from ever feeling scared in their own home.


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