A locksmith has issued a warning to homeowners after seeing a "new burglary trick" being used to gain access to property.
Lynton Christian, a locksmith based in Wirral, said he has seen the new method being used multiple times.
The trick involves putting a magnet, or some other flat object which can be stuck, across the bolt-hole of the door they wish to enter during daylight hours when the occupants are home.
He said the trick takes just seconds, allowing robbers to carry out the trick even when people are in the home.
The flat object blocks the door bolt from closing, preventing the lock from working. All the robbers need is for the door to be left unlocked or ajar by the homeowners for a moment.
Lynton said the burglars' intention is to return to the home later that night, as the occupants are sleeping or out of the house so they can enter freely due to the lack of a working lock.
He stressed he wasn't warning people with a view to profit as a locksmith but hoped people would take extra care to "Stop, look and check" before going to bed.
Lynton said the "new trick" relies on the homeowner not discovering the reason why their door isn't locking and hoping for the best or putting off acting on it until the following day, by which time the criminals may have already struck.
The locksmith said he had seen the trick used, most recently when a small but strong magnet was placed on the bolt-hole while the homeowner had left the door ajar briefly.
It was still daytime when the man discovered the object; he had not left the house all day.
Lynton told the ECHO: "I didn't think this was actually a thing at first. But as I've seen in the past week, I've seen it happen, or almost happen, twice to the same shop and another case with a guy who was in the house all day, which is shocking.
"They must've hopped over his back gate, quickly threw a magnet on his open back door. Then if he hadn't have spotted the magnet, he would've probably just thought his lock was faulty.
"That's one of the reasons why I wanted to make people aware. A lot of people will just want to call the locksmith in the morning for the lock that seems broken, leaving them at risk overnight.
"I think it's now an upcoming thing. I think criminals are just trying to find new tricks.
"If your lock's off and you don't stop, look and check where the bolt goes in, then there's a chance that people could be burgled, that same night even."
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