Locksmith Whitley Bay - No Call-Out Fee, Fixed Quote

What a locksmith job costs comes down to the work and to who does it. On the work: whether the lock can be repaired or has to be replaced is the biggest single factor, and a multipoint mechanism is a different part and a longer job than a standard cylinder swap. Out-of-hours calls cost more than the same job booked in during the day. On who does it: a locksmith with full stock in the van, proper training and a warranty behind the work is not the same purchase as someone fitting locks in their spare time, which is the argument I set out in cost versus value when hiring a locksmith.

The part most people don't know is that nobody is checking. Locksmithing is not a regulated trade in this country - no exam, no licence, no accreditation. Anyone can put a name on a van and start charging tomorrow, which is why it is worth asking what a locksmith actually holds before you book one.

That is where the cheap phone quote comes from. A low figure gets the job in the diary; then the door gets opened, and the number changes - the lock had to be drilled, the mechanism was scrap, the door needs making good. You hear the real price standing in your own doorway, which is a poor place to argue about it. Scammer locksmiths in Newcastle: how to avoid them goes through how that works and what to do if it has already happened to you.

So here is how I do it. You get a free, no-obligation quote before anything starts - over the phone where I can give you one, at the door once I've seen the job where I can't. There is no call-out fee. And the price we agree is the price you pay, even if the job turns out bigger than expected: no revised figure halfway through, nothing added at the end. Tell me what has happened when you call and I'll give you a straight answer on what is involved.

I'm DBS checked and insured, and I'll tell you what I'm doing and why before I do it rather than after.