A trade anyone can enter
A burglary, a snapped key or a lock-out can leave a household needing a locksmith within the hour, and search results often list companies advertising very low prices. This article summarises guidance from Bromley Council Trading Standards, the Master Locksmiths Association (MLA) and the Business Companion guidance for traders, together with Which? and the text of the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013. The Business Companion guidance covers England, Scotland and Wales, and the Regulations extend to the whole UK. It is general information, not legal advice.
No statutory licensing
The MLA, which is a trade association for locksmiths, states that there is no regulation in the locksmithing industry and that, effectively, any locksmith can charge any price they wish. Its statement is a description from a body with an interest in promoting its own members, but it is consistent with the warnings from Trading Standards below. Bromley Trading Standards’ alert of February 2025 lists poor quality work, excessive charges and difficulty obtaining redress among the risks of using a rogue trader.
Warning signs the sources describe
Both Bromley Trading Standards and the MLA warn about the tactic of drilling a lock as a first attempt at opening a door, when non-destructive methods are available. Drilling can turn a simple lock-out into an expensive lock replacement. Bromley also advises avoiding suspiciously cheap prices in search results and confirming that the caller is dealing directly with the locksmith rather than a subcontractor.
The MLA lists further red flags: a very cheap advertised price, a national company or call centre that subcontracts the work, and vague discussion of pricing. It gives an advertised price in the range of £39 to £59 as an example of a price that points to a scam.
What to do before an emergency
Bromley Trading Standards recommends identifying a trustworthy locksmith before an emergency arises, reading reviews and checking membership of trade organisations, and using a locksmith approved by the Trading Standards Checked scheme where one is available locally. It also advises requesting a quote before authorising any work.
The MLA states that its approved locksmiths are criminal-record checked, regularly inspected and have passed the MLA qualification. These are the association’s own claims, and they can be checked through the MLA’s member search rather than taken from a company’s website logo.
What Which? reported
Which? published an investigation of locksmith scams in April 2024. It describes bait-and-switch pricing, in which a low initial quote rises sharply once the locksmith is on site, and says scammers can manipulate search adverts to look legitimate. It gives the example of a victim quoted between £60 and £120 who was charged £500 for a job of about 15 minutes and later negotiated the bill down to £300. Which? lists further red flags as intimidating behaviour, demands for cash and calls answered by a call centre rather than a locksmith, and it repeats that locksmiths are not regulated, so technically anyone can call themselves one.
For prevention it suggests using the MLA database, asking friends for recommendations, checking reviews, sending photos of the job to obtain quotes, and verifying website addresses.
Your cancellation rights are limited in an emergency
Many consumers assume the 14-day cooling-off period will let them cancel a service booked at home. Under regulation 28(1)(e) of the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013, the cancellation rules do not apply to contracts where the consumer has specifically requested a visit from the trader for the purpose of carrying out urgent repairs or maintenance.
The Business Companion guidance explains the exception in the same terms and adds that it applies only to those specific services. Regulation 28(2) provides that the cancellation rights still apply to any services beyond the urgent work requested and to goods other than replacement parts necessarily used in the repair, if they are supplied during that visit. A locksmith who sells an additional product or upgrade during a call-out may therefore be selling something that can be cancelled.
Getting a written quote before work starts is the more reliable protection, because a consumer who has called out a locksmith cannot usually rely on cancelling afterwards.
If things go wrong
Bromley Trading Standards directs consumers to Citizens Advice for consumer complaints and to Action Fraud for suspected fraud. Which? adds that consumers can contact Trading Standards through Citizens Advice and report to Action Fraud, or call the police on 101 in Scotland, and that anyone who paid by card should contact their bank immediately using the number on the card, since chargeback and section 75 claims may be available.
The bottom line
Locksmiths are not licensed, so the safest approach is to identify a vetted local firm before a problem arises, insist on a quote from the locksmith directly and be wary of very low advertised prices and drilling as a first resort. Because the 14-day cancellation right generally does not cover urgent repairs that the consumer requests, checking the price beforehand matters more than trying to cancel later.
Sources
- London Borough of Bromley Trading Standards, “Trading Standards alert: Looking for a locksmith?”
- Master Locksmiths Association, “Emergency Locksmith & 24 Hour Locksmiths”
- Which?, “Locksmith scams: spot the signs of a rogue trader”
- legislation.gov.uk, “The Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013, regulation 28”
- Business Companion (Trading Standards), “Consumer contracts: off-premises sales”