Security door or door armouring: how to choose?

The ritual question of our advisory visits. Definitions first, because everyone cheats with them: the security door block replaces leaf AND frame — steel structure, factory multipoint, protected cylinder — and it is the complete assembly that is certified (A2P BP1–BP3: about 5, 10, 15 minutes of tested resistance). Armouring keeps your door and reinforces it: steel plating, anti-pry strips, certified multipoint, hinge protection — a radical upgrade of a sound door, without the block's certification since the original frame remains.

Protection: the honest hierarchy

At maximum budget the certified block wins — the frame is precisely what armouring doesn't replace. But a good armouring on a sound door defeats the vast majority of home burglars, whose attacks last minutes with a crowbar. The real question: what do your exposure and your insurance require?

Budget

Co-ownership and appearance

The city's frequent referee: a block that changes the landing-side look usually needs co-ownership approval; armouring preserves the original panel and the question mostly evaporates. Block makers also offer matched facings, at a premium.

Insurance

Read your theft clause BEFORE choosing: "3-point lock" and "A2P lock" are satisfied by proper armouring; "certified door" or "A2P BP block" only by the block. Certification's quiet virtue: it ends any expert debate on door quality after a claim.

The cases that decide themselves

Armouring: sound thick door, strict co-ownership, counted budget, upper floor with passing neighbours. Block: tired or thin door (armouring mediocrity is bad investment), strong exposure (ground floor, isolated house), BP required by insurance, higher values at home. The third player: on a tight budget with a decent door, a certified multipoint + cylinder protector (€600–1,200) captures much of the benefit — often our staging recommendation.

The visit and the works

A serious adviser examines your door and frame before opening a catalogue: leaf, frame anchoring, exposure, your policy — then a written quote with options, never a "valid today only" discount. Works: half a day to a day for either solution; you sleep behind your new protection the same night, and a first-year adjustment is part of a proper job. Avoid the three classic ruins: armouring a hollow door, neglecting the hinge side, and crowning the project with a bargain cylinder — the ensemble protects, not the parts.