GitLab

When it comes to hiring trade professionals, we can all find ourselves settling for the cheapest deal. Most of the time, hiring a trade service provider is something you do in an emergency. With an unexpected cost, you want to (rightly) try to save as much money as you can. 

However, as you might have already found to your cost, going too cheap can lead to some expensive mistakes. To avoid these kinds of costly lessons that leave you needing a second professional and some other professional help at the same time, consider the following tips.

We reached out to a locksmith in Sheffield to understand what makes it possible to tell the good locksmiths apart from the frauds. 

How To Tell If Your Locksmith Is Legitimate (Or Not)

Before you rely on Larry the Locksmith from down the pub, or you use someone from a dodgy social media advertisement offering cheap-as-chips services, read on. We’ll help you avoid walking into a headache by hiring someone who might not be a trustworthy professional locksmith like they claim.

Generally, you should be looking for a locksmith that offers:

1. Competitive Pricing

The easiest way to tell if a locksmith is legitimate or not is to look at their price list. When speaking to locksmiths locally, we actually called a Bradford locksmith, we took the time to review their prices. We found that most of these locksmiths offered the same kind of baseline pricing, give or take, say 5-10%. That is a good thing, why?

Because the locksmith who seems to be undercutting everyone else is probably for the watching. The demand for locksmiths on the market sets standard trade prices in your area; anyone who is going excessively below the market rate is likely a ‘too good to be true’ kind of deal. Quality locksmiths charge a fair price that is realistic for the service they provide. 

Many untrustworthy locksmiths start out with dirt-cheap prices, then the price skyrockets when they start including X, Y and Z into the price factor. Or, they do a poor-quality job that leaves you having to buy twice. In the worst-case scenario, they are criminals masquerading as locksmiths!

2. No Upfront Payments 

You should never be asked by a locksmith to provide payment up front for their services. Locksmiths who ask for money up front for supplies or for work to be carried out in the future are not to be trusted. 

Any genuine locksmith only asks for payment, having disclosed the price in full already, once the job is done and you have been left happy with the job they do. 

3. No Obligations 

Any quality locksmith trusts their work enough not to feel like they need to pressure you into hiring them. If a locksmith offers free property reviews, there should be a clear indication that they do not expect you to hire them afterwards. 

Any locksmith worth hiring will be clear that they offer ‘free, no-obligation property inspections’ or something similar. If they seem to put the pressure tactics on, avoid!

4. Proven Accreditation Or History

If you go to any trustworthy locksmith's website, they should give you an indication of how long they have been in business. Now, you can easily trust a locksmith who has been in business for 1+ years (though we recommend relying on locksmiths with 3+ years of experience and above). 

However, if there is no indicator of their time served or years of experience, that is a red flag. Any quality locksmith will be proud of their time served. If they hold accreditations, too, such as City & Guilds or NCFE-approved locksmith training, that should be noted on their website/social media, too. 

Always make sure that any locksmith you hire is someone with proven experience. 

5. Visual Identification & Physical Address

Locksmiths whom you can trust will be people who are happy to put a face to a name. If you go to their website, social media, or flyer/brochure, there should be a picture of a locksmith. Ideally, they should be in company attire, as well. Dodgy locksmiths will either use a fake picture (see below) or show no images. That is an immediate red flag.

So, too, is not having an address. If you cannot find a business address for a locksmith, do not hire them. In the best-case scenario, they are lying about being a ‘local’ locksmith – in a worst-case scenario, they are not who they say they are. Be sure to double-check that the address is real and not a fake address or a P.O. box address. 

Pro Tip: Don’t believe the image, or feel like you’ve seen it before? You can search Google for the image. Right-click on the image and select ‘Search image with Google Lens’ to verify the image isn’t being used on other websites. 

6. Lack Of Insurance

This can be harder to identify, but if you read over a locksmith's website, there should be clear language used to show they are insured. If you cannot find anything about locksmiths having insurance, we would recommend avoiding them. If this is the only red flag that you find, you can always call them up and ask, but be wary about the answers. If they seem evasive, avoid them!

Any genuine professional will protect themselves and their clients by having an insurance package. If a locksmith you are considering hiring makes no mention of insurance, it is not a good sign, is it?

Avoid Taking Any Risks When Hiring A Locksmith

All of the above signs are clear indicators that the locksmith you are dealing with is someone you can trust – or someone you should avoid.

Read over these points again and make sure you are fully aware of the red flags we have laid out. This is the kind of advice that could stop you from inviting someone into your home who actively puts you, your family and/or your property at risk. Be careful, be vigilant, and only hire a locksmith you can trust without any reservations. If possible, get a word-of-mouth recommendation!