Shut out of your own front door in Woodridge

The first tool out of the bag is a pick or a bypass, not a drill. On a standard Australian house lock — a deadlatch on the front, a deadbolt if you have one, an aluminium sliding door at the back — that works in the large majority of cases. The lock is left working exactly as it was, which matters, because a drilled cylinder means new hardware and a bill you did not expect.

Some locks genuinely cannot be opened without damage. High-security restricted cylinders and a few anti-pick designs are built specifically to resist what we do. When that is the situation you hear it before we start, together with what a replacement costs, and you decide.

One figure, quoted before the van moves, covering both the call-out and the work. No separate call-out fee appearing later, and no adjustment for the hour or the weather.

If you want more done while we are on site — a deadbolt fitted, a spare key cut, the back door rekeyed — that is quoted separately and only goes ahead if you agree. Nothing gets added to an invoice without a conversation first.

Before we open anything, we need something that ties you to the address. A driver licence with the address on it is the simplest, but a bank statement, a rates notice, a lease or a piece of mail will do. If none of that is inside reach, we can usually work it out with the agent, the landlord or another occupant.

We ask everyone, without exception, and we would rather lose the job than skip it. A locksmith who does not ask is a locksmith who would open your door for somebody else just as readily.