Emergency boarding and property make-safe, across London and the South East.
Property First Response boards up and makes safe damaged, broken-into and exposed property across London and the South East: forced doors, split frames, broken shopfront glass and vacant buildings left open after burglary or forced entry, vandalism, an accident or a storm. Emergency boarding is available 24 hours a day for residential, commercial and vacant property.
Boarding is a temporary make-safe measure: timber or OSB sheet cut to the opening and fixed with anti-tamper fixings. The permanent repair — a new door, a repaired frame, replacement shopfront glass — is a separate stage, agreed once the opening is secure.
Choose the right route
An opening is exposed now
For a door, frame, window or shopfront that is damaged or open at this moment.
Tell us the postcode, the opening involved and what happened, whether the property is occupied or empty, and how the building can be reached.
Commercial or account enquiry
For agents, landlords, property managers and businesses arranging repeat, portfolio or planned response across managed, commercial and vacant buildings.
Tell us the property types and areas involved, the access and key-holder arrangements, and the documentation and invoicing details your process needs.
Keep clear of loose glass and unstable doors or frames. Photographs can support an initial estimate; the final scope is confirmed on site.
Emergency boarding and make-safe
Boarding closes an exposed opening with timber or OSB sheet, cut to size and fixed with anti-tamper fixings. It covers front, back and communal doors, broken window openings, shopfronts and commercial frontages, and openings on vacant and void property.
Useful detail at the point of enquiry: the type and rough size of the opening, whether the property is occupied or empty, and how access is arranged.
Damaged doors and frames
Forced entry usually damages more than the lock. Frames split at the keep, hinges tear out of the jamb, and the door can distort so it no longer closes square. The opening is secured first, and what the door and frame then need is set out separately.
Where the door and frame are sound and only the lock or cylinder has been attacked, locksmith work after forced entry can make the door lockable again. Wooden doors, frames and linings are repaired or replaced in timber, which covers communal entrances and older houses.
Burglary and vandalism damage
Burglary, attempted forced entry, vandalism, accident and storm damage all leave the same problem: an opening that will not close. Boarding, locksmith work after forced entry and the follow-on door, frame or glazing repair are handled as distinct stages, so it is clear what has been made safe and what still needs permanent work.
Shopfronts and commercial premises
A broken shopfront leaves stock, fittings and the frontage itself exposed. Shopfront and commercial boarding closes the frontage; shopfront glass repair or replacement is the follow-on stage.
For a trading unit, include key-holder and controlled-entry details in the enquiry.
Vacant property and exposed buildings
Vacant houses, void flats, closed shops and units between tenants are boarded where a door, frame, window or shopfront has been damaged or left open. Where a building is managed rather than lived in, the work can be arranged around a key-holder or controlled-access arrangement.
Commercial response and accounts
The commercial route is for agents, block and property managers, portfolio landlords and business owners. It covers emergency response across managed, commercial and vacant buildings, alongside planned boarding and make-safe work.
Photographs, invoices and documentation
Documentation can include photographs of the damage and completed work, a description of what was done and an itemised invoice.
Those records can support a conversation with an insurer, landlord, managing agent or owner. Say what documentation you need when you enquire. Whether a claim is covered is decided by your insurer.
Areas covered
Property First Response works across London and the South East. Each area page sets out its local scope, and the postcode and access details are confirmed for the individual property when you enquire.
Enquire today
An opening exposed now, damage you can photograph, or portfolio, repeat and planned work — choose the route that matches the job.
Call 020 4538 1390Send photos for an estimateCommercial & account enquiry