I'll have one aftermath, please. Oh, and what will that cost including VAT?
Further to the burglary, sorting out the problems is not going to be cheap...
The Cost Of Securing Things
The laptop was some years old, and so is unlikely to be much above the excess. Everything else can be resolved for under £50. So, I'm down one laptop to start, and will probably spend £500 before I get a replacement with everything I need installed on it.
Buildings insurance will cover the change to the locks in the house, with a small excess of £100 to be paid. Totally worth it. I will probably spend another £20 on spare keys for the long list of people I call when I lock myself out.
The next problem is the car. Replacing the key and reprogramming so the stolen key can't start the car will be £188, minus a £100 contribution from the insurance company. But the stolen key will still open the car, so I would be exposed to having anything left in it stolen, and nothing I could do except park my car away from the house. Alternatively, I can replace the car locks for a painful £849, which is still £749 after my insurance company contribution. This hurts a lot.
What are my alternatives? I could go for the reprogram, buff it up, and try to sell it quickly. Chances are I'd be lucky to get £14K for it (thanks, recession) and my "genuine reason for sale" is likely to put most people off buying it at all. It would probably reduce the value more than the £750 on resale, and I suspect failing to mention something like "Oh, and burglars stole the spare keys" is not a legal option.
So, a break-in without damage, and the value of things stolen under £250 is likely to cost me somewhere around £500 + £100 + £750 +£20 = £1370. Plus all the lost time, lost work, and the cost of my increased paranoia as a result of this. And that's for someone fully comprehensively insured.
I think I may invest in a house alarm, a safe, and a sentry gun for the back.
The Cost Of Securing Things
The laptop was some years old, and so is unlikely to be much above the excess. Everything else can be resolved for under £50. So, I'm down one laptop to start, and will probably spend £500 before I get a replacement with everything I need installed on it.
Buildings insurance will cover the change to the locks in the house, with a small excess of £100 to be paid. Totally worth it. I will probably spend another £20 on spare keys for the long list of people I call when I lock myself out.
The next problem is the car. Replacing the key and reprogramming so the stolen key can't start the car will be £188, minus a £100 contribution from the insurance company. But the stolen key will still open the car, so I would be exposed to having anything left in it stolen, and nothing I could do except park my car away from the house. Alternatively, I can replace the car locks for a painful £849, which is still £749 after my insurance company contribution. This hurts a lot.
What are my alternatives? I could go for the reprogram, buff it up, and try to sell it quickly. Chances are I'd be lucky to get £14K for it (thanks, recession) and my "genuine reason for sale" is likely to put most people off buying it at all. It would probably reduce the value more than the £750 on resale, and I suspect failing to mention something like "Oh, and burglars stole the spare keys" is not a legal option.
So, a break-in without damage, and the value of things stolen under £250 is likely to cost me somewhere around £500 + £100 + £750 +£20 = £1370. Plus all the lost time, lost work, and the cost of my increased paranoia as a result of this. And that's for someone fully comprehensively insured.
I think I may invest in a house alarm, a safe, and a sentry gun for the back.