Why Haven’t More Homes Switched Over to Combination and Digital Locks?
Why Haven’t More
Homes Switched Over to Combination and Digital Locks? Before the 1970s, the Swiss
completely dominated the world in wristwatch sales. In the early sixties, fearful
of losing any market shares to new and cheaper battery-powered watches, a group
of Swiss engineers banded together
and developed the first quartz wristwatch in 1967—the Beta 1. A conglomerate of
Swiss watchmakers, however, decided not to pursue the new technology. By 1968,
Seiko introduced the world to the first production quartz watch. It was an
instant success. By the time the Swiss saw the error of their ways, it was too
late: the Japanese companies would forever take larger and larger shares in a
market that had once been literally synonymous with Switzerland.
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| locksmith combination door lock |
Therefore, if the paradigm is to
ever shift toward more secure and reliable combination locks, then the industry
must address why resistance to change persists. Much of the resistance is attributable
to one thing—misinformation, which when firmly planted becomes very hard to
uproot.
What ideas about keyless locks,
then, are wrong, or at least are no longer true? Well, there are at least three
false notions that stand out as obstacles to change: safety issues, appearance,
and inconvenience. The perception that keyless locks are somehow less safe
is possibly due to their being grouped in the same category of the electronic
swipe card found in nearly every hotel around the world. It is true that
electronic swipe card mechanisms are easily susceptible to hackers, but no
homeowner or homebuilder would ever install a “hotel” type system in place of
even the cheapest keyed lock.
Movies, too, have added to the
perception that any ordinary person (common burglars included) can swiftly and
clandestinely override combination or digital locks, such as biometric
(fingerprint) ones. The fact is that a door with a combination lock is much
harder to break into than one that requires a key. In many places across
Europe, insurance companies often require homes to be protected with the harder
to pick lever locks rather than with tumble locks, which may also contribute to
the idea that they offer more security than all other types. (As a
side note, insurance policies with the major providers in the United States are
not affected by what type of lock is on the home.)
The second issue—appearance—is
simply no longer a valid reason for not switching over. There was a time when
there was little choice among the styles and looks of lock systems other than
standard keyed systems. They were large and bulky, i.e., unsightly mechanisms
that clashed with the existing décor. Today, however, alternative lock systems
have gotten sleeker and smaller, and there are dozens of designs and finishes
to choose from to suit most any taste.
The third idea that keyless systems
present more of an inconvenience is simply false and never should have been
allowed to take root. Most all systems can be readily installed using the
existing holes and slots in standard manufactured doors—with no additional
installation fees.
“What if I forget my combination?”
and “What if I’m incoherent and hospitalized and can’t communicate my combination
to someone so they can get in my house?” are two concerns of inconvenience that
are also commonly voiced. First of all no one forgets their bank PIN or their
email pass code after a few trials. So, why would it be any different for a
code that is used multiple times a day? Second of all, when is there ever a
situation in which an incapacitated person doesn’t have a friend, family
member, or neighbor who already has access to the home? Even if codes are
forgotten or inaccessible, any decent locksmith can override the system.
Many people also falsely believe
that power outages and disasters such as hurricanes would be an inconvenience,
too. What they don’t understand is that most combination locks are not
electronic, and that nearly all digital ones that are, are self-contained and
independent of the home’s electrical system and not affected by power outages.
A fourth obstacle slowing down any
shift toward keyless locks—high cost—is
unfortunately and largely still true. Though prices in recent years have gone
down, the average cost of an alternative lock system is anywhere from three to
five times more expensive. If home builders started installing them as standard
features in high-end homes, the cost
would be absorbed by the initial buyer. Until then, however, making a shift to
keyless locks must rely on industry insiders to be proactive and re-educate the
public.
Dan Muston, a
professional locksmith for 10 years, is intrigued by safety, locksmith work and
security installations. Aside from creating articles about the locksmith
profession for web and blog sites, Muston maintains the growing social media
presence of DandLock, a professional locksmith company servicing Arizona,
California, Florida and New York. Reach out to Muston via email at:
dan.muston77@gmail.com.
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