Hi everyone,
I wanted to share a concerning experience I’ve had in my apartment, hoping it might help others be more aware. About three weeks ago, I noticed someone trying to look into my window, and last week, the same thing happened again. However, yesterday, things escalated when I saw a hand reaching through my window from inside the apartment. I was terrified and immediately called the police. The situation has been documented.
As a woman living alone, I no longer feel safe here. I’ve been staying with friends because I’m too scared to be alone in the apartment. My landlord has not responded to my messages about the situation, which has left me feeling completely unsupported. And I feel totally panicked and terrified, I already have a trauma about this back into my country and this escalated even more.
Although I still have one month left on my lease and nowhere else to go, I don’t feel safe returning to the apartment. I’m now seeking ways to improve my security, like installing a security fence on the window, but I wanted to make others aware of what happened in case it helps prevent similar experiences. Also wanting to reach for help, because my landlord hasnt helped at all, and i feel totally insecure and alone in the house 
Stay safe, everyone.
Best,
Marina
Hi Marina, firstly I’m really sorry that you’re experiencing this and that you don’t feel safe in your home.
The first thing I would do is arrange to have the locks to your doors changed (not by the landlord but a locksmith or a friend if you can’t do it yourself…for most locks it’s very simple and cheap to do).
Then do whatever it takes to feel safe in your home. Whether it be security cameras, an alarm system (simply safe or similar that are diy kits), etc.
Do your windows have locks and keys? Most window locks use generic keys so if yours have locks but no keys, you can probably get them off eBay or Amazon quite cheap.
As for the landlord not responding/not helping…I guess ‘legally’ he’s not responsible for making you feel safe in your home but it’s pretty poor of him to completely ignore the situation. I would at least be trying to help you feel safe even if I couldn’t cover the full cost of doing so.
@Marina8 Prevention is always better than a cure. There are ways to allow your dwelling to breathe without having your windows wide open and inviting unwanted attention from undesirables.
You mention hands sneaking through your open windows. This can easily be thwarted by using a security feature found on most modern double glazed UPVC framed windows made in the last 40 or so years. You can lock your window latch in place whilst still having a small 5 to 10mm gap for air to flow. This is more than enough for ventilation and mould prevention, and also doesn’t allow anyone to put their hands through.
To discover if your windows have this feature try to twist the handle into the locked position whilst the window is slightly open by 5 to 10mm. You should feel the window bolts locking into the secondary ventilation/security position if your windows have this. They look like the grey metal slots with two positions in the images provided in this post.
Sounds like you live on the ground floor? If so, you should move. Ground floor flats are the target of “opportunity” burglars, i.e. people walking past who see a window open and go have a look see what they can find. Its very common and the police will do nothing. the landlord can’t do much either, if you open a window it will happen. I had people constantly probing my ground floor flat in wimbledon, knocking on door at 1am, etc, even breaking the glass.
