After the BBC's rip of Britain featured rogue locksmiths we have been inundated with emails and complaints, not complaints about rogue locksmiths but complaints about the BBC advertising a private locksmith company, the MLA and how the company was allowed to use clever wording to suggest to viewers that they are some sort of official regulatory body and only their members can officially trade as locksmiths.

As all genuine locksmiths know this could not be further from the truth and we have already sent our own complaint to the BBC and are currently speaking to solicitors regarding claiming damages due the actions of the BBC. All Locksmiths should send in their own compliant to BBC Complaints, PO Box 1922, Darlington, DL3 0UR.

We are still waiting for an official statement from the BBC and an explanation as to why they promoted a private company when the BBC is meant to unbiased, in the meantime we would like to clarify that the locksmith industry is currently unregulated and there is no official regulatory body.

Their business model is a private membership club and 3 day crash courses in locksmithing.

The highest qualification you can currently gain in the locksmith industry is the Ofqual diploma which takes many months to complete; you cannot learn an entire trade in 3 days, any trade, let alone locksmithing.

Ofqual stands for The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation and is a non-ministerial government department that regulates qualifications, exams and tests in England. There is nothing higher and the MLA do not offer these courses due to teaching qualifications and college status being a requirement.

The MLA are happy to continue to offer their private crash courses and run their membership scheme, this is fine and has never really effected legitimate locksmiths until the BBC decided NOT to research the industry and misinform their viewers.

Many Smart Locksmith members do have the official Ofqual diploma; others are time served locksmiths with many years of experience. When you choose a locksmith off our website the locksmith is guaranteed to skilled in the trade.