Utrecht students complain about digital key
Residents of SSH complexes say doors often fail to work, leaving them feeling unsafe.
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Students in Utrecht’s SSH complexes High Five and Baobab are once again complaining about the digital key they use to open their building and home. Residents say doors sometimes only work after several attempts, while there is no affordable alternative for those unable to use their phone.
RTV Utrecht reported on the complaints again on Sunday, speaking to several students and viewing a document kept by residents containing more than thirty reports. Residents say they sometimes have to wait a long time, wake neighbours or ask others for access when the app or door fails to work.
The issue includes High Five in Utrecht Science Park, an SSH complex with 921 student homes. Utrecht University said when the building opened in September that it contained 721 studios and 200 rooms. Residents of Baobab have also reported problems accessing the building, bicycle storage and other communal areas.
The debate is not only about convenience. Residents say that using the app leaves them dependent on a charged smartphone and a functioning app. RTV Utrecht reports that, according to residents, a physical electronic fob costs €200. The tenants’ organisation BoKS reportedly proposed through Trajectum that a fob should be made available against a €50 deposit, but SSH rejected the proposal.
A faulty front door has heightened concerns. Trajectum wrote that an unauthorised person entered the building after the door failed to function properly. Residents saw that person inside the building; urine was later found in a stairwell. We are leaving out details about the person because they are not necessary to understand the safety issue.
According to RTV Utrecht, SSH says employees have checked the doors and that the systems are technically sound. In comments to Trajectum, the landlord said residents sometimes push doors open themselves and that the problems with the front door are separate from the digital key policy. SSH also writes that residents are in principle responsible for keeping their phone charged.
The issue has now reached Utrecht politics. Alderman Matthijs Sienot was previously asked questions about the key policy and said, according to Trajectum, that he wanted to discuss it with SSH if the landlord and BoKS could not reach an agreement. The alderman also warned that the municipality has little power to enforce changes.
The broader question is how much responsibility a landlord may place on residents when access to their home is arranged entirely digitally. A digital key can simplify management, but it can also make access to a home dependent on power, a phone, software and accessible support. For now, it is unclear whether SSH will make structural changes to the system.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- Students report problems with digital access to their residential complexes.
- SSH defends the system and says the doors have been technically checked.
- Tenants’ organisation BoKS is asking for an affordable alternative.
- The issue has reached Utrecht politics.
Left
Arguments A tenant must always have reliable access to their own home without excessive additional costs or dependence on a smartphone.
Values Housing security, accessibility and protection of tenants in dealings with a professional landlord.
Consequences SSH should provide physical or inexpensive alternatives and actively resolve faults.
Centre
Arguments Digital access can be efficient, but only if reliability, privacy, accessibility and an emergency solution are arranged in advance.
Values Proportionality, safety and practical feasibility.
Consequences An independent technical evaluation and discussions between SSH, BoKS and the municipality could determine what changes are needed.
Right
Arguments A landlord may use modern systems, and residents may be held responsible for normal use, such as charging their phone and not keeping doors open.
Values Personal responsibility, efficient management and clear agreements.
Consequences Too much public intervention could make innovation and affordable management more difficult, but genuine technical defects must still be fixed.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The article’s central points are supported by recent reporting from RTV Utrecht and Trajectum, supplemented by Utrecht University’s official description of High Five. Residents’ complaints and SSH’s response are clearly attributed to the parties involved.
- confirmed Students in High Five and Baobab are complaining about digital access. — Reported by RTV Utrecht on 1 November 2026. source
- confirmed High Five has 921 student homes. — Official publication by Utrecht University. source
- confirmed According to residents, a physical electronic fob costs €200. — Amount cited in the recent RTV Utrecht report. source
- confirmed SSH rejected a proposal for a fob against a €50 deposit. — Documents and responses described by Trajectum. source
- confirmed Utrecht alderman Matthijs Sienot was asked questions about the key policy. — Reported by Trajectum. source
Editor's note
What is certain is that residents, BoKS and SSH disagree about how the system works and who is responsible for it. Most complaints come from residents; no independent technical investigation into all the reports has been made public.Sources
- Studenten zijn digitale sleutel spuugzat — RTV Utrecht
- Insluiper en onvrede over digitale sleutels bij High Five — Trajectum
- Eerste bewoners nemen hun intrek in High Five — Universiteit Utrecht
More on this in Dutch media
- RTL Nieuws — „utrecht studenten”
- NOS — „utrecht studenten”
- Het Parool — „utrecht studenten”