Are Locksmiths Registered? How to Check One

The locksmithing industry is not regulated in the UK. Anyone can trade as a locksmith regardless of competence, background or motive, and the government has said it sees no need to change that. The Master Locksmiths Association puts the numbers at roughly 6,500 unvetted locksmiths against about 340 MLA-approved companies.

That gap is why locksmithing has a scam problem that plumbing does not. A lockout is urgent, the customer is standing on the pavement, and the first number on the phone gets the job. Our guide to locksmith scams covers the four patterns in detail: fake local listings, bait pricing, unnecessary drilling and payment pressure. This page is about the checks that stop them working on you.

The Master Locksmiths Association is the only body that vets locksmiths. Approval means three things: every locksmith employee has passed a standard DBS check arranged through the MLA, the company is inspected regularly for standards, equipment and workmanship, and at least one employee holds the MLA Level 4 qualification.

Search approved companies at locksmiths.co.uk/find-a-locksmith by postcode or your current location, within a radius of 3 to 60 miles, filtered by the service you need. Each listing shows a licence number. Every MLA-approved locksmith carries an up-to-date MLA ID card, so ask to see it at the door and compare the licence number with the listing.

There is no such thing as a police-approved locksmith. A company claiming police approval or recommendation is making the claim up.

1. Put the address into a map. Scam sites list fake local addresses; the MLA has found one that resolved to the central reservation of a dual carriageway. A real locksmith has premises, or at least a real street.
2. Ask for the name of the locksmith who will attend. A national call centre subcontracting to whoever is nearest will not tell you. A local firm will.
3. Ask for the price before giving your address. The MLA lists asking for your address before knowing the job as a scam marker. You should get a call-out charge, a labour rate and an idea of parts, and you should ask whether the quoted figure is a fixed price and whether VAT is included.
4. Treat £39, £49 and £59 headline prices as a warning. The MLA's 2026 price guide puts labour from about £85 an hour, lock replacement from about £90 to £148 and entry from about £90, with most emergency locksmiths charging no separate call-out fee. A price well under that is bait.
5. Ignore stickers. London Trading Standards warns specifically against trusting locksmith stickers at shared-building entrances.

• Shows ID without being asked twice.
• Tries non-destructive entry first. London Trading Standards' wording is that it is very rare for a skilled locksmith to need to drill a lock. Drilling as the first move is the scam, not the service.
• Confirms the price before starting and does not invent extra problems once the door is open.
• Does not tell you to claim it on insurance, and does not keep your card details for a later charge.
• Leaves you an itemised invoice: call-out, labour, parts, VAT if registered. Keep the packaging from any new part fitted.

The advice every body repeats is to find a locksmith before you need one. Pick an established local firm, check whether they cover nights, save the number, and leave a spare key with a neighbour or in a key safe.

Two standards come up when a lock is replaced. BS 3621 is the British Standard for thief-resistant locks on external doors; a compliant mortice lock has at least five levers and carries the Kitemark and "BS3621" on the faceplate. Some home insurers require BS 3621 locks on external doors and some do not, so read your policy before the locksmith fits anything.

TS 007 covers the euro cylinders in uPVC and composite doors, rated against lock snapping. A three-star cylinder is the anti-snap benchmark. The Kitemark is the third-party certification to look for on both.

A locksmith who cannot say which standard the replacement meets has not thought about your insurance. Ask before the old lock comes out.

For an MLA member, complain to the MLA, which runs a standard complaints procedure. For anyone else the MLA logs the report and points you to Trading Standards, with a template letter, and to the Advertising Standards Authority for misleading adverts. Call the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 0808 223 1133, which passes cases to Trading Standards, and Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 if you were deceived about who you were dealing with. If you were threatened, call the police.

One rule does not help here: the 14-day cooling-off period does not apply when you invited a trader in for urgent repairs and asked them to start. What does apply is the Consumer Rights Act 2015: the work must be done with reasonable care and skill, and if no price was agreed in advance you owe a reasonable price, not whatever appears on the invoice. Card payments over £100 can be challenged under Section 75.