uk locksmiths work available

[oldlock]

must be picked and within 15 minutes. the rates they are paying is £140 a day and £70 a half day,.

That is lousy money ! Especially considering you are going to be paying all your expenses (ie fuel from job to job, tax & ni etc) from that.

But as someone has pointed out there are lots of ' locksmiths ' who have done a quick course and think they can do everything who are going to be desparate enough for the work to do it.

While I was working in the UK I had around 1 call a month on average from someone who had done a course and was looking for sub-contract work, the number of 1 time only yellow pages ads etc was also on the increase - I doubt that many, if any are still in the trade.

Paul

[pinky]

i know what you mean , i get inundated with mail calls and emails by new locksmiths and old all wanting contract work, though most have done a 2 day course that week and think they are fully non destructive, the clever ones practice like hell, gain experience with the bad paying national emergency companies then go on for contract work.

i have people phone round all ads in my yellow pages, cheapest in notts is £15 per hour no call out, but no picking drill and change locks, parts at retail plus vat, though a rim cylinder is £50. another claims non destructive entry at £30 fixed fee 24 hours, but if parts are needed then its dear.

i had 14 new yellow pages ads last year appear, of which 2 have readvertised this year, then another 11 new ads this year, though of all the ads , only 14 are non destructive and can offer a full locksmith service.

this company are offering poor rates, but the upshot is for a new locksmith £140 a day is far more than they are currently earning, this with what private and mational emergency company work they get will ensure their survival, its unrealistic to think an unproven new commer will command the rates mentioned earlier, so although poor if it ensures survival then its worthwhile, they get experience here and then move to the more lucrative contracts, its a good start point and we all need to start somewhere.

the reason for this post was to give the new guys an in to the warrent industry, one they can build on, it was kept realistic , rates are higher from contract to contract and in different areas, though until established you will be hard pushed to get the higher rates.

[toomush2drink]

Ok so some people think its crap money but watch out as there are people out there who will come in and steal that work from you because they are cheaper.
Customers are wising up to high prices as i get a lot of work off of the back of them. How on earth can people charge £120 callout plus £40 for a lock plus vat just to open a locked euro on the inside(this company are mla members too).This is a quote one of my customers had for a weekday daytime job.
I appreciate the tools, advertising and other costs etc add up but ripping people off isnt good for the trade as a whole.

[Varjeal]

I see it all the time on this side of the pond as well...guys who charge 50+ to show up, 15 or 20 to open the lock, another 15 or $20 to pull the lock apart and key it, then 3 or 4 bucks per key + 5 or 6 bucks to put the lock back on the door. If ANYTHING else needs adjustment (such as a loose strike plate), that's charged at 40 or 50/hr with 1/2 minimums...It's all nonsense I think.

[MrB]

Well, I'm in the customer position so I would be paying for someone like a locksmith to come on a call out, and so of course I would dislike paying more than necessary.

But...if you are the one running the business and you go on a callout, then with travelling time and time on site it must take up about an hour of your day. I actually don't see how you could charge your time at less than say $50/hour and cover all your business costs with a reasonable expectation of income at the end of it?

[MrB]

Oh and for toomush: I agree that £120 for a callout is a bit steep, but if someone balks at paying fifty quid for you to drive all the way over there and let them in after they locked themselves out of their house, then they deserve to get their lock drilled.

[acl]

The problem with the new guys gaining experience with the nationwide/maintenance companies is that they encourage the locksmith to drill out locks because ,as already mentioned, they can then charge stupid money for replacements.As most pay a percentage of each job unfortunatley its in his interest to drill.
I also think its unbeleivable what some companies charge to simply change a lock.Recently heard of some old girl being charged £500 to have 3 locks changed after being locked out(and we are not talking Banhams here) Whats a customer giong to do next time they get locked out? Not call a locksmith thats for sure.

[Varjeal]

That's exactly it...a customer gets worked over once, and all of a sudden breaking a window IS cheaper than calling a locksmith.


There's nothing wrong with charging reasonable rates (and the those numbers may vary depending on economics and the area) after all we're in business to make money, but what I was saying is that soaking the customer who's relying on you is ridiculous.

[Rockford]

Yes the Emergency companies have a policy of lock replacement and not repair, and they set the hrly labour rates, however the charging of parts is down to the Locksmith. It's not the companies who are ripping off customers, its the locksmiths who hike up the prices of parts.

But lets not tar all newcomers with the same dirty brush.

I subcontract for one of the emergency companies to fill-in between private work, and I treat their customers with the same respect as my own. I charge only for necessary parts, and then at local DIY shop rates. I also DO make repairs to locking mechanisms in order to save the cusomer money. Also, if a job should take approx. 1hr, and it ends up taking 1.5Hrs - through whatever reason, then I'll only charge for the hour. The customers appreciate this, and has resulted in a number of private jobs coming my way - as I always leave a card if requested.

The emergency companies are an ideal extended training ground for newcomers, without them how would the experience be gained ?.

Rockford.....

[toomush2drink]

I find it disgusting customers are treated with such contempt. Im building my business on reasonable and fair prices, sure if you have just started out and need to claw back some of your investment it is tempting to overcharge but long term you wont get repeat business. Even some of the advertisers i deal with have commented on the fact its nice to talk to someone who is "polite to them for a change". Politness costs nothing but makes a big impression rather than a gruff response to a phone call.
Dont get me wrong i dont want to be the cheapest out there as i value the skills i have learned but there has to be a good balance between profit and fair prices.

[pinky]

again all valid points, but 1 rogue trader tends to tar all other locksmiths in the area as such, once aaron locks were on telly happily ripping off joe public , no one trusts a locksmith, we are all crooks, mind you he now advertises aaron locksmiths as seen on tv, brass balls or what.

this is what prompted my own ads and pushed me into my ad which reads that if i drill or destroy your lock i will replace it with a like for like lock totally free of charge.
this works for me and gets me work, if i drill it costs me not the customer, it built up trust, and has only cost me 4 locks last year.

many rip off artists are themselves MLA members, though MLA are only an association and not an authority, and if they aspire to ever become more they need to police and control their own so called master locksmiths properly, many talented locksmiths drill in the name of profit, too many now move to the darkside, i would welcome national skills testing and banning of driller killers.

[acl]

Rockford ,not sure what emegency co you are working for but all i have heard about put fixed prices on euro cyls etc (and they aint cheap!) maybe youve stumbled across a decent one! Most guys i speak to feel embarassed/guilty about chargeing Mrs x £50 for a euro cyl but thats the price the company charge and they make 30% on that so what choice do they have? Dont get me wrong im not trying to be argumentative but this seems the perfect place to have a moan about the cowboys.
Pinky think your idea re the like for like lock change if you drill is a good un cant beleive nobody else has done it!
Regards Andy

[acl]

To add to that ill have to admit that i and quite a few other guys id consider to be fairly good lockies,used to work for Aarons so perhaps there is something to be said for the emergency cos!

[pinky]

when you consider how much a lock costs you, its not such a hard guarantee to offer, i charge an average rate for the area, not cheapest not dearest, but im good to my word, if i drill it i replace it free.
had 1 locksmith rang me with a chubb 110 , thought he was gonna get a new one, safeventures pin and cam broke his heart.

i got all the lock work from a housing association that fit only chubb 3K74, they was paying for an hours labour and a new lock on every lock out and every time a tenancy changed hands, i went in , guaranteed to replace any lock i had to drill free with a new 3K74, but the pin and cam allows me to open all within 5 to 7 minutes. change of tennant i call round rekey the lock and cut new keys direct from the pick, 1400 properties.

it goes to prove that non destructive works, drillers make only short lived short term profits, con men get 1 off jobs, far more to be earnt long term by woed of mouth and reccomendation, this may be less immediate profit but leads to a much healthier long term business.
if after a quick buck drill and con, if you want a healthy business then pick and give value for money, dont underprice your skills, but dont rip off the customer.

[acl]

Pinky do you use martins pin and cam or terry staddons pick?