Should the cylinder be changed every time the tenant changes?

It is the recommended thing to do. Even if the tenant gives you back all the keys, you do not know how many copies were made or who they were given to.

There are two ways of doing it:

• Replacing the whole cylinder with a new one. Simple, especially if the current one is already worn.
• Fitting a rekeyable cylinder, which lets you change the combination without replacing the part. If you let the property often, it is more convenient in the long run.

With holiday lets, where guests come and go every few weeks, changing the cylinder each time is not practical. There, a protected key cylinder works better, as copies cannot be made without the card, together with keeping track of the keys you hand out.

Do it once the tenant has left the property and handed back possession. We explain it in cylinder replacement.