Hiring a locksmith
How to spot a locksmith scam before it reaches your door
Most bad locksmith experiences follow the same script, and it starts long before anyone reaches your door. Once you know the pattern you can hear it in the first thirty seconds of the phone call.
By Timmy Creighton, founder and licensed locksmith · Major Key Locksmith · October 2026
How the script goes
You are locked out, so you search and call the first number. Someone answers with a generic greeting rather than a business name. They quote a very low price for the “service call” and will not say what the job costs. Someone turns up in an unmarked car, announces the lock is high-security and must be drilled, and the bill ends up several times what you were told on the phone. By then the lock is destroyed and the door is open, so you pay.
The warning signs
- No total price. A trip fee with the job left open is the hook. Ask for the number you will actually pay.
- No business name when they answer, or a name that does not match the ad.
- No license number. In New Jersey, locksmiths are licensed by the state, and the regulations require a locksmith’s advertising to carry its Locksmith Business License number. If you cannot find it, ask for it.
- The drill comes out first. A competent locksmith tries non-destructive entry first. Drilling is the last resort, not the opening move.
- Pressure. Rushing you to agree before you have a price, or cash only with no invoice.
Five questions that sort it out
- What is the total, including coming to me?
- What is your business name and your license number?
- If the lock has to be destroyed, what does that add?
- What does it cost after hours, and when do after-hours rates start?
- Will I get an itemised invoice?
A real locksmith answers all five without hesitating, because they get asked all five every day.
How to check a license
The New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs has an online license lookup. Search the business name or license number. Ours is printed at the bottom of every page on this site.
How we do it
Our prices are published, all-in, before you call. A house lockout is $250 during the day. If a lock has to be destroyed to get you in, replacing it is +$150, and we say so before we touch it. When a technician is dispatched you get a live map link to the actual truck, so you are not left wondering who is coming.
Questions people ask
Is a very cheap service call price a red flag?
Often, yes. A service call price with no job price attached is the most common way a bill grows on site. Ask for the total.
Do locksmiths need a license in New Jersey?
Yes. New Jersey licenses locksmith businesses, and their advertising is required to show the license number.
The locksmith says my lock has to be drilled. Is that true?
Sometimes, but rarely as a first step on a standard residential lock. Ask what they have tried, and what replacing the lock will cost, before you agree.
Want us to look at yours?
Send a photo or describe it in a sentence. Estimates by text, photo or video are free, and if it is a five-minute fix we will tell you so.
Keep reading
Any price mentioned here is the one published on our pricing page as of October 2026. The final price is always confirmed with you before any work begins. More answers from the blog →