Locks and Security News: your weekly locks and security industry newsletter
17th April 2024 Issue no. 701

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Letter to the Daily Mail re 2-day locksmith courses

UAP's director David Jennings was furious when he saw an article in a recent issue of the Daily Mail newspaper. So much so that he felt compelled to write to them:

Dear Sirs

I was mortified to see your article promoting 2 or 3 day locksmith courses and advertising an Association owned by that training company.

Why didn't your writer do any research about this before submitting such tosh.

Your article is saying that anyone can do a 2 or 3 day course, then become a qualified locksmith and then join a locksmith association.

Does that really sound right to you? 

To become a locksmith takes years and years of practice and training. Even old established locksmiths will tell you that they are still learning. But according to your article it can be done in 2 or 3 days.

And who are these people you are writing about? They started these courses only a few months ago insisting on destructive entry in to a persons property. Then to give credibility they set up their own Association to give their training some consumer credibility, and their trainees a badge to market themselves.

Why didn't your writer speak to the Master Locksmith Association for their comment, or the Institute of Certified locksmiths? I am 100% confident they would have rubbished the claims made in your article. 

Your article does nothing except promote people wasting their money on worthless training that is wholly inadequate for their needs.

Would you want someone turning up at your door to do some work who has been on a simple 2 day training course? I wouldn't.

And what checks does the training company undertake on their trainees? None. So now you have the potential for convicts released from prison on Monday, doing a 3 day training course on Tuesday to Thursday and then setting up as a locksmith in an unregulated association on Friday. Brilliant, well done.

The Locksmith Industry is totally unregulated. Did you know that? Anyone can call themselves a Locksmith. Did you know that?

In this country there are some fantastic locksmiths doing a fantastic job, but then their work is brought down by the hundreds of would-be-locksmiths promised pots of gold from articles like yours.

So what happens in real life... you need a locksmith, so you telephone around, and get one of the good guys who may quote £70 for the work, and may get into your house using skill, and preserving the existing locks.

You then call the 2 day warrior who may charge £50. So the consumer not knowing that just about anyone can call themselves a locksmith goes for the cheapest option. And isn't it great that the Locksmith belongs to an Association. The guy turns up, and that's when it starts to go terribly wrong. Drilled locks, damaged doors, broken glass... all at the consumers expense. Now a £50 job could turn out to be £300 and even more.

What other industry do you know where the real training, and experimentation will be done at the consumers premises and at the consumers cost?

I have been a Daily Mail subscriber for over 25 years, and never have I ever had the urge to write to you. But this article is lazy journalism at its worst. And what's more it is likely to cost the trainees a small fortune and the end consumer a whole lot more.

You should, and must correct this article before it does a lot of damage.

Kind Regards

David Jennings

Director

Tel: 0161 763 5290

Fax: 0161 763 6726

E-mail: [email protected]

Web: www.universal-imports.com : www.tradelocks.co.uk : www.lishitools.com : www.pickbuster.com

6th October 2010