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If you need a locksmith, there are a number of ways someone might go about finding and selecting one. Obviously, the urgency of the situation may influence how someone might look for and select a locksmith, but please bear in mind that it is not easy to select a locksmith. You need someone that you can trust and be confident will do a good job, will charge a reasonable price and will provide an excellent service. So I’ve had a look at some of the key things to consider when you are wondering how to identify and select a good Locksmith.
It’s not necessarily plain sailing. This is largely because locksmithing is not a well regulated profession. There are no legally binding official qualifications or registrations required to become a locksmith. That means there are plenty of bad locksmiths trading out there.
So what resources are available to you to ensure you get a good one?
We all know it is very widely used and easy for people to search in Google for a locksmith. In fact 80% of people use Google as a first resource when checking for service providers. The days of a 3 inch thick Yellow Pages are long gone!
Generally, the business or businesses that appear first (under ‘sponsored’) are the ones where people have paid for advertising with Google. And in general the top spots are the ones that have paid the most advertising spend.
Normally this means national companies with a big marketing budget. They are likely to be expensive and will use subcontractors. Often the checks on these subcontractors are very limited.
Don’t be fooled by a flashy professional looking website – it is no indication of their ability to do the job.
They might sound good, but remember there is no verification here – so anyone can pretty much claim anything (e.g. you cannot verify their claim about the number of years experience they have, etc…).
Reviews are a good indicator, but again these are unverified. Reviews could be fake or even purchased.
And often the national companies will appear to all intents and purposes that they are local but aren’t. (see my previous article on this https://lockguy.co.uk/keep-it-local/)
There are a plethora of directories for example Check A Trade, Yell, Bark, Local Heroes, Trust A Trader, etc…
Unfortunately, they are all profit making machines with the focus on generating revenue, not on providing excellent tradesman. These directories charge locksmiths and other trades people to appear on their platforms. Generally, the more they pay, the higher they appear. Therefore, these people are likely to charge more.
The checks these directories do are limited. They do sometimes ask for proof of insurance and possibly a DBS certificate, but they do not have the resources (or do not want to pay for them) to verify if reviews/references are genuine and to actually check if they can do a good job.
In January 2025, the BBC did an interesting piece about people that have had very bad experiences after selecting a tradesperson from these trade recommendation sites.
Some people will look to facebook community groups for recommendations of locksmiths and other trades.
This can be an effective way to get recommendations. But, be aware, it has been shown that these recommendations are largely provided by friends and family members to help a person’s business. It is not necessarily a genuine review.
Also there are various business networking and community groups that support each other in a kind of ‘I’ll-scratch-your-back-if-you-scratch-mine’ type of arrangement. In other words tradespeople often have an agreement that they will refer each other whenever someone posts something on Facebook looking for a tradesperson.
When looking at recommendations on Facebook community sites, have a look into the profile of the people making the recommendations. Do they look like a genuine person? Do they always and continually recommend the same people?
If you can get a recommendation from a genuine customer who can speak first hand about the experience they had with a certain business/person, then that is great. Sadly, a lot of recommendations are not genuine on Facebook.
Please also be careful about posting things on social media that may indicate where you are – especially if you have a lock issue that might mean your property is not as secure as it could be.
As already mentioned, the locksmith profession is not well controlled making it more difficult to identify quality, approved locksmiths.
However, some organisations, like the UK Locksmith Association (https://www.uklocksmithsassociation.co.uk/business-directory/) are trying to professionalise the industry and you can connect through them to a recommended local locksmith.
Please check out their website for a list of qualified locksmiths in your area.
This traditional form of advertising for businesses is declining in favour of more digital formats on social media.
But there is still a place for this. At least those businesses advertising in local magazines and through leaflets should be local. But with other forms of advertising, there is no way to verify if that person/business is actually any good or not.
In the end, it is very difficult to be 100% confident in selecting a trustworthy locksmith due to all the reasons highlighted in this article.
The best way to get a recommendation, is through word of mouth.
If you know someone (a friend, neighbour, colleague, family member, etc.) who has previously used a locksmith and they did a good job, then this remains the best way to verify if a locksmith is any good.
Good locksmiths will trade off their reputation and it is in their interests to make sure that they do a good job every time.
I hope this article on How to Identify and Select a Good Locksmith has been useful to you. If you have any questions or would like to discuss my services please get in contact.
Got a question about a lock issue you may have? Why not have a look at the FAQ page or one of the helpful advice videos on the Media page.