Guide
Lock Repair or Replacement: Working Out Which Your Door Needs
Call 01483 377197 if a lock has stopped working and you would rather someone looked at it today. Emergency calls are answered around the clock, every day of the year.
A door lock is a small collection of parts rather than a single object, so asking whether to repair it or replace it rarely gets a useful answer. The better question is which part has given up, and whether that part can come out by itself. This guide, written by Woking Locksmith for householders and landlords in Woking, walks through that question one component at a time.
Most so-called repairs are really one part swapped for a new one, and a few situations call for replacement even when a repair would work. Nothing here can diagnose your own lock; it shows what a symptom usually points towards and what to check next.
Call with your postcode for a current arrival estimate.
- 24-hour emergency cover
- No call-out charge
- Price agreed before work starts
Which Part Has Actually Failed?
On a typical UK door, the locking hardware breaks down into four or five separate parts, and a symptom normally points at one of them rather than at the whole lock. A key that has become stiff, a handle that has gone loose or a door that refuses to lock is not, on its own, proof that everything needs replacing. Often the trouble sits in one component, or in how the door meets the frame, while the rest of the mechanism carries on working perfectly well.
| Symptom | Likely part | Usually replaceable on its own? | Relative cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Key turns freely but the bolt never moves | Likely the cylinder or the cam connecting it to the lock | Usually, yes | Low: a single component |
| Key will not go in, or will not turn, even with the door open | Likely the cylinder, or a worn key | Usually, yes | Low |
| Handle lifts but no hooks or bolts engage | Likely the multipoint gearbox | Often, if a matching gearbox can be found | Middle: more than a cylinder, far less than a door |
| Bolt or latch only catches when the door is shut | Likely the keep or the hinges, not the lock at all | Usually an adjustment rather than a part | Lowest on the list |
| Handle droops or feels loose | Likely the handle or the spindle | Usually, yes | Low |
| Lock feels stiff through the whole turn with the door open | Likely wear inside the cylinder or the lock case | Depends on which; a cylinder usually, a case sometimes | Low to middle |
Every row says "likely" because one symptom can have several causes. Try the lock with the door standing open before you read across the table, as our step-by-step guide to replacing a door lock explains; if it works smoothly open and struggles closed, the door and frame are the first suspects, not the lock. Do not force a stiff key or handle while you investigate, and hold off buying parts until the fault has a name. For a fuller picture of how each lock is built, see what each type of door lock is made of, and if you would prefer the fault found and fixed for you, read about the lock repairs we carry out.
The Parts That Can Be Changed on Their Own
On most UK doors the lock is modular. A failed part normally comes out without disturbing the rest, which is why so many "lock repairs" are really a single component swap. The governing point for anyone reading a quote is simple: replacing a cylinder is not replacing a lock, and the two should never be priced as if they were the same job.
Cylinders, Handles, Latches and Keeps
These four sit at the inexpensive end of door hardware, and each can be taken out without touching anything else on the door.
- Cylinder. The barrel the key turns, found as a euro cylinder on most uPVC and composite doors and as a rim cylinder on a nightlatch. It is the part of a door lock replaced more often than any other.
- Handle and spindle. These drive the latch and, on a multipoint door, the locking strip. A drooping handle more often means a tired handle or a worn spindle than a failed lock.
- Latch. The sprung tongue that holds the door closed when it is not locked.
- Keep. The plate on the frame that the bolt or latch enters, sometimes called the strike plate. It gets adjusted far more often than it gets replaced.
Three of these four are well within reach of a competent DIYer, and the keep is frequently the cheapest fix anywhere on the door. How a replacement part is measured and fitted is covered in how a replacement lock is measured and fitted.
The Multipoint Gearbox, Which Is Its Own Question
On a uPVC or composite door, the gearbox fails more than any other part and is also the part most often mistaken for the cylinder. The difference decides the whole job:
- The cylinder is what the key turns.
- The gearbox is the unit inside the door edge that the handle drives, throwing the hooks and bolts out into the frame.
- The tell-tale sign: if the key turns but the handle will not lift, or the handle lifts and nothing engages, the cylinder is probably fine and the gearbox probably is not.
Fixing a gearbox counts as a repair in that you keep the door, yet the gearbox itself is swapped rather than mended. Availability varies with the age and maker of the door, and where no match exists the entire multipoint strip has to be replaced instead. In cost terms, a gearbox job sits well above a cylinder swap and well below a new door. Our uPVC door lock service covers this work in detail.
Repair tends to make sense when the problem traces back to alignment, or to one replaceable part, and everything else in the mechanism is still dependable. That said, not every lock is built in pieces. Some are one-piece units, and some parts for older or unusual locks are no longer made, so a modular approach is the usual case rather than a guarantee.
Rekeying or a New Cylinder: What Are You Being Offered?
Rekeying keeps the lock in place and changes which key will operate it, whereas a cylinder change removes the part the key goes into and fits a new one. Knowing both lets you compare like with like. For what separates a stronger cylinder from a weaker one, see what makes one cylinder more secure than another.
What Rekeying Actually Changes
Rekeying alters the pins inside the cylinder so they line up with a different key, which means every old key stops working at once. It is a reasonable choice in two situations:
- a property with several locks that you would like to run from a single key;
- hardware you want to keep, perhaps because it matches the rest of the building.
What it cannot do is help a lock that is worn, damaged or of the wrong specification, because the same mechanism goes straight back on the door. The question to ask yourself is why the job is needed. If a key has gone missing, rekeying deals with that. If the lock itself no longer works properly, it does not.
When Swapping the Cylinder Is the Simpler Answer
A standard euro cylinder is held by a single fixing screw, so a straight swap is often the quicker route; the process is described in changing a cylinder on a uPVC or composite door. A new cylinder comes with its own set of keys, so it answers a lost key just as rekeying would. It also gives you the chance to change the specification at the same time, turning a worn basic cylinder into a better one for the difference in part price. Across several doors, though, the sums can come out the other way. Before agreeing, ask:
- Is this quote for rekeying or for new cylinders?
- What specification is the replacement, and is it the same as what is fitted now?
- What would the alternative option cost for the same number of doors?
Repair, in either form, earns its place when one identifiable part has failed and the rest of the system is still reliable. Replacement deserves a look when key security is in doubt, when damage has spread past a single component, when parts are hard to source, or when the existing lock no longer suits the door. Older, unusual and discontinued systems are where parts most often turn out to be obsolete or incompatible, and where several components wearing out together tips the balance towards a new lock.
When Repair Is Possible but Still the Wrong Answer
A lock can be in perfect mechanical order and still be the wrong lock to keep. Repair answers a mechanical question, and some of the situations below are not mechanical at all. They are about who can open the door, or about whether the lock meets a condition set elsewhere. If your door has been forced, our page on securing a door after a forced entry explains what that work involves.
After a Lost Key or a Forced Entry
When the issue is who can open the door rather than whether it opens, mending the mechanism changes nothing.
- A lost or stolen key. The lock may carry on working exactly as before while nobody knows who holds a key to it. A repaired mechanism still accepts that key, so the real task is regaining control of access, which means changing the cylinder even though nothing is broken. It is worth weighing whether the key could be tied to your address, whether anything identifying went missing with it, who has held copies in the past and whether other copies may be unaccounted for. If you are shut out as well, see getting back in when the key is gone.
- A forced entry. A lock that has been attacked may still turn, but it has taken loads it was never designed for, and damage inside a cylinder or case is not always visible from outside. For the wider steps, read what to do after a break-in.
If an insurance claim is involved, photograph the damage before anything is changed, and ask the locksmith to list each part that was replaced.
When a Standard or a Policy Condition Applies
Where a policy names a lock standard, a repair that keeps the original lock may not satisfy it. Policies commonly name a British Standard for a final exit door, and a repair leaves whatever is fitted now in place. If that lock never met the named standard, mending it does not change the position; replacement is the moment the specification can be raised. How the standards differ is explained in our guide to BS 3621 and TS 007. Before choosing:
- read the security condition in your own policy wording;
- ask the locksmith, in writing, which standard the part they plan to fit meets.
An older lock can still be worth repairing when the fault is contained and matching parts exist. Lubricant helps only with routine maintenance and the right product; it will not cure misalignment, wear or internal damage, so follow the manufacturer's guidance rather than reaching for oil or a general-purpose spray.
Locksmith pricing
What the Two Options Realistically Cost
The shape of the costs matters more than any single figure. From cheapest to dearest, the ladder usually runs:
What moves each step is the part that failed, the type and specification of lock, the parts needed, and whether the door or frame also needs attention. Older or less common parts can take longer to identify or obtain, and where no compatible part exists, wider replacement may follow. Two rules matter more than the numbers:
You pay for the work carried out, any parts needed, and VAT. Rates outside Monday to Friday, 7am to 6pm, are higher, but the call-out itself is never charged.
Every job is priced on the call from your description, and anything found on site that changes the price is explained before work starts. For typical figures, see what locksmith work costs, with the figures.
Call 01483 377197 to describe the fault and get a price.
Adjustment
a keep or hinge set so the bolt meets the frame cleanly.
Single component
a cylinder, handle, spindle or latch.
Whole lock
a new mortice case, nightlatch or lockset.
Mechanism
a multipoint gearbox or a full multipoint strip.
Ask exactly what is being replaced.
A good quote says what will be adjusted, repaired or swapped rather than calling everything a lock change, and a cylinder priced as a lock change is the commonest way a fair job becomes an unfair bill.
Ask what is not included.
Parts, VAT and the time of day all affect the total.
Doing It Yourself or Getting It Done
Which jobs you take on should follow the component, not how confident you feel on the day.
Reasonable to attempt
adjusting a keep, changing a handle, or swapping a rim or euro cylinder where the measurement is straightforward.
Possible but easy to get wrong
a mortice case, where the recess in the door and the keep on the frame both have to line up.
Better left to a locksmith
a multipoint gearbox, anything on a fire door or a flat entrance door, and any lock with a key snapped inside it, because a fragment left behind can turn a small job into a much bigger one. See what to do when a key is stuck in the lock, or our service for.
The parts list on this page is the same one a locksmith works from, so knowing which part has failed already puts you most of the way to a fair quote.
Have the Lock Looked At in Woking
We look at the door, tell you which part has failed, and quote for both the repair and the replacement so the decision stays with you. When you ring, have three things ready: what the door is made of, the symptom in plain words, and whether it happens with the door open or only when it is shut.
There is no call-out charge at any hour, and emergency calls are taken day and night all year round. [PROVIDER PACK: DBS checks for technicians] [PROVIDER PACK: public liability insurance details]. You get a price on the call from what you describe, and anything found on site is explained before work begins.
Get the Lock Diagnosed: call 01483 377197
Repair or Replace Questions
Is it cheaper to repair a lock than to replace it?
Usually, when the fault lies in alignment or in one part that can be changed by itself. Once several parts are worn, the lock is badly damaged, matching parts cannot be found or you are unsure who holds a key, replacement tends to be the better value.
How do I know if my lock can be repaired?
Start by checking whether the problem happens with the door open or only when it is closed. If the lock works freely when open, the door or keep is the likely cause. If not, the symptom table above shows which part it probably points to. Avoid forcing a stiff key or handle in the meantime, since that can add to the damage.
Can a locksmith tell what is wrong from a photograph?
Sometimes. Clear photographs of the door edge, the cylinder and the handle can help identify the locking system, though a fault inside the mechanism usually needs to be seen in person.
Should the price be agreed before the work starts?
Yes. The work and the price should both be explained before anything begins. If the inspection turns up a different fault, ask for the revised work and total to be confirmed before the job goes ahead.
Do I need a new lock after losing my keys?
Not necessarily a whole lock, but the cylinder should change if a key cannot be accounted for, because a repair leaves the old key working. Rekeying or a new cylinder both stop that key from opening the door.
Is a repaired lock as reliable as a new one?
It can be. When the correct fault has been identified and suitable parts are fitted, a properly completed repair should restore dependable operation.