I’m selling a house for my father (I have power of attorney and live hundreds of miles away from the property).
The estate agent has had the keys for a while, and at least two other tradespeople have accessed the garage without any issues. However, when the buyer’s surveyor recently tried to access the garage, they got the key stuck in the lock—likely using the wrong key.
Now, the estate agent is telling me I need to pay for a locksmith to fix it.
(if I lived closer, I’d go round with some WD40 and a set of pliers, but it’s a 7 hr round trip)
Given that the estate agent has had the keys all this time and others have used them without problem, who’s actually responsible for this, and who should be covering the cost of the locksmith?
AIBU - the keys are my responsibility, I should pay for a locksmith.
AINBU - the estate agent holds responsibility for the keys in their possession, they should pay.