When You Don't Need a Locksmith | Save Your Money

I talked a woman out of booking me last Tuesday. She was in Milford, convinced her back door lock was broken, already had her card out. Took me ninety seconds on the phone to work out the keep had shifted and the bolt wasn't lining up. I told her to loosen the two screws on the keep plate, wiggle it down about two millimetres, retighten, and try it. She rang back seven minutes later to say it worked.

She did not pay me a penny. And she's saved my number for when something actually goes wrong.

That is the whole business model, right there.

The jobs I talk people out of every week

I'm not being noble about it. I'm being honest, because a locksmith who charges you £90 call-out to do something you could have sorted in five minutes is one you'll never ring again, and you'll warn your neighbour off too. Word travels fast in Belper Lane End and Openwoodgate. I'd rather be the name people trust.

So here are the calls I get regularly where you genuinely don't need me.

The stiff lock that won't turn smoothly. Nine times out of ten, this is a dry cylinder or a gummed-up mechanism. Do not use WD-40. It's a water displacer, not a lubricant, and it'll leave a sticky residue that makes things worse in six months. Get a dry PTFE spray, or a proper lock lubricant like Tri-Flow. Squirt it into the keyhole, work the key in and out a dozen times, and repeat. Under a fiver from any hardware shop in Belper or online. I've arrived at jobs in Duffield where the lock was perfectly fine and the owner just needed to do this.

The door that's dropped and the bolt won't reach the keep. This is almost always a hinge issue, not a lock issue. Doors drop. It happens in older terraces in Bridge Hill and the stone cottages around Heage. Check your hinges first. Often one screw has worked loose. A longer screw into the same hole, packing it with a matchstick if the thread has gone, costs you about 20p and ten minutes. If the door has dropped badly enough that the bolt genuinely misses the keep by more than five or six millimetres, that's when you call me, because you've got a structural issue. But try the hinges first.

The keep that needs a minor adjustment. Explained this one already. Two screws. Slot-head screwdriver. Move the keep plate slightly in the direction the bolt needs to go. This fixes probably a third of the 'my lock isn't working' calls I get.

The hinge bolt that won't engage. Some composite doors and uPVC doors have small security hinge bolts on the hinge side. When the door drops, these can bind. Same fix as above: hinge adjustment first.

The barrel that's turned too far. On some older mortice locks, if someone's forced the key past the correct position, the bolt ends up in a weird intermediate state. Most of the time you can sort it by trying the key at slightly different angles with gentle pressure. Not always, but worth two minutes of trying before you ring anyone.

When you absolutely should call a locksmith

I'm not making the case that locksmiths are never needed. Obviously I am one.

Call me, or someone like me, when:

• The cylinder is visibly damaged, snapped, or has been attacked. Snap damage on a euro cylinder is a specific thing and it's a security emergency, not a DIY fix.
• You're locked out and none of the above applies. A good locksmith gets you in without destroying the lock. A bad one drills everything and charges you for replacements you didn't need.
• The lock mechanism itself is worn or broken internally, key turns but nothing happens, bolt won't retract no matter what.
• You've just moved into a house in Kilburn or Crich or anywhere else and you don't know who has copies of the keys. Change the cylinders. A 3-star TS007 cylinder for a uPVC door costs around £35 to £50 fitted. Worth every penny.
• Your insurance requires a BS3621 or BS8621 mortice lock and you haven't got one. Fitting a mortice lock is not a beginner job.
• Something feels wrong. Keyhole scratched, lock slightly misaligned when it wasn't before, door doesn't sit flush. These can be signs someone's had a go at the lock. Get it checked.

The myth that annoys me most

People assume that if they can't get in, the lock is broken and they need a new one. That's what some locksmiths will tell you, because a new cylinder sale is better margin than an opening job.

Most of the time, a lock that's been picked or bumped, or a door that just won't open because of swelling or misalignment, can be opened non-destructively and the lock reused. I've opened uPVC doors in Wirksworth and Ambergate where the homeowner was convinced they needed a full lock replacement. They didn't. The lock was fine.

If a locksmith shows up and immediately tells you the cylinder needs drilling and replacing before they've tried anything else, ask them why. A decent one will give you a straight answer.

Why I'm telling you this

Because I've seen what happens when people have a bad experience with a cowboy locksmith. They either overpay for unnecessary work, or they delay calling anyone because they assume they'll get ripped off again, and they end up on the doorstep in the rain at 11pm because the stiff lock they ignored for three months finally gave up.

A locksmith who'll spend two minutes on the phone telling you to try lubricating your cylinder first is the one who actually knows what they're doing. If the lubricant doesn't fix it, call back. But try it first.

That's not me being generous. That's me being the kind of tradesperson I'd want to deal with if something went wrong in my own house.

Locks Local covers Belper and the DE56 postcodes, plus Ripley, Holbrook, Duffield, and the surrounding villages. Average arrival under 30 minutes where we can manage it. Call for a straight price before we turn up, no surprises on the invoice.