Lock picking

[Alcesalces]

So the house I am buying has 4 locked hatches upstairs. My vendor has inherited the property and has no key. The locks look pretty simple. So we either need a locksmith which would be expensive or we could buy a lock picking set and have a go.

Any experience of lock picking? Is it as easy as on TV? If you were our vendor would your consider either option reasonable?

Cheap Angle grinder. Less than 30seconds and good fun.

Depends on the lock. Padlocks are easy, others can be harder

Why haven't the vendors just sorted out the locks when they placed the property on the market, I wonder? 🌹

@Newestname001quite. The vendor seems to be completely in the dark about the entire property despite his uncle having built it. On the plus side it appears he may actually be organising a locksmith for us (as he should). But I think it's so he can check beforehand there's nothing too bad for us to find. He's so suspicious of our wanting to look I'm beginning to think there might be bodies in them.

All sounds very dodgy- e.g. the claiming not to know anything about the property....

Definitely get the vendor or estate agent to open the doors. Tell them you need to see the whole house before you commit to buying it.

Locks are very rarely picked.

It is usually quicker and easier to drill out or snap the cylinder. If you call an emergency locksmith he will sometimes spend 61 minutes pretending to try and pick your lock, then tell you it is "too good to pick" and drill it out or snap it in one minute, then charge you for a two-hour callout.

If you have a 5-lever British Standard deadlock, which is much more secure, it might be necessary to use noisy cutting tools.

A cheap simple lock on a loft hatch can be forced with a jemmy, or possibly a teaspoon.

A person who actually knows how to pick locks will do it in minutes or less, unless it is a bank vault.