Campus, furnished lets and house shares: the door you close without thinking
In the areas near the university campus, a good share of the housing consists of furnished studios and house shares that have been occupied for only a few weeks. People readily step outside without their keys to go down to the bike store or pick up a parcel, and the door closes behind them. In these buildings the latch bolt alone is enough to shut you out: nothing has been locked, but the door is well and truly closed. It is the most common situation in the town, and also the most straightforward to deal with.
The other difficulty is administrative. Someone who moved in at the start of the academic year often has no bill in their name, and sometimes not even a signed tenancy agreement to hand. Say so when you call: a tenancy agreement received by email, a letter from the residence, or the help of the caretaker or of a flatmate who is there will usually be enough to establish that you do live in the property. This check is not red tape for its own sake: it also protects the neighbour whose door looks just like yours on the floor above.
Before opening, walk around the plot
The estate neighbourhoods, Compostelle, Cap de Bos and the streets around Alouette, almost all share the same layout: a front door onto the street, a gate, an attached garage and French windows on the garden side. Before considering any work on the front door lock, it is worth checking these secondary ways in, including the connecting door between the garage and the house, which is left unlocked far more often than people imagine. A simple walk around the plot settles a fair number of situations before a professional has to step in at all.
In Toctoucau the logic changes completely. The hamlet is separated from the rest of the town by the forest, the plots are large and neighbours are further apart: giving a landmark that can be seen from the road, saying whether the gate is locked and whether the front steps can be reached avoids a wasted journey. France Serrure works throughout the Gironde; a few details of this kind given over the phone make the visit far smoother, here as in the areas furthest from the centre.
How does this service work?
Techniques, typical situations, standards and things to watch out for: it is all on our door opening page. This page focuses on what the service involves in Pessac.