What I do on an office lockout
Commercial lockouts differ from residential ones in a few important ways: higher-security cylinders are common, keying schemes (master-keyed suites) matter, and I’ll almost always ask for proof of authority before opening the door.
Proof of authority: for a domestic lockout I’ll ask for photo ID with proof of address. For a commercial one, I’ll want evidence that you’re authorised to access the premises, typically a named lease, company ID card, or a phone call to your building manager who can confirm you. This is a protection against someone using locksmiths to get into premises they don’t own or rent.
Once that’s confirmed, the work is similar:
- Standard commercial Euro cylinder, picked open non-destructively.
- Mul-T-Lock / Kaba / Yardeni / other high-security cylinders, some are pickable, some aren’t. I’ll tell you honestly before attempting and before any drill decision.
- Mortice locks on wooden office doors, picked or bypassed, same as domestic.
- Electronic access control (fobs, cards), if the electronic system is down and the mechanical override is a key cylinder, that’s what I pick. If there’s no mechanical override, the issue is the access-control system itself and needs the installer, not a locksmith.
For master-keyed systems (one master key opens many doors, each door also has its own sub-master), lock replacement has to be planned carefully. If one sub-master is compromised, typically the master has to change too, I’ll talk this through before fitting anything so your keying scheme stays intact.
Pricing is the same time-of-day table as residential. Call-out once, all doors in the same visit charged at normal labour rates.