Legality of lockpicks

13-12-2008, 01:24

Hi,
I am looking to retrain as a locksmith in march and was wondering if it was legal to purchase the lock picks early so I could have a fiddle beforehand as the course is quite expensive.
So are there any locksmiths or police who could let me know as i looked through the internet and found conflicting advice.
Obviously i will only be using inside my own house and not carrying them around outside.

Gary L · 13-12-2008, 01:30

A good cheap supplier is dealextreme. if it's illegal to train then it must be legal as long as you get paid

http://www.dealextreme.com/search.dx...h.lock%20picks

13-12-2008, 01:56

Thanks for the quick reply and the prices are quite cheap but I should have mentioned i am in the uk and probably won't be able to import from us

Raistlin · 13-12-2008, 10:09

Owning lockpicks (AFAIK) = legal.
Using them within the home (AFAIK) = legal.
Carrying them around outside unless you're a registered locksmith (AFAIK) = bad idea.

13-12-2008, 10:10

its tooled up if you carry them

Raistlin · 13-12-2008, 10:14

That's what I was thinking.

**Russ** · 13-12-2008, 10:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by zinglebarb

its tooled up if you carry them

Not always - there has to be a reason to suspect that you're going 'tooled up'.

If I was a locksmith (or training to be one), you were locked out and needed my assistance, I'd be allowed to bring them along with me.

Saying that I'm sure I've read somewhere that locksmiths need to be registered with the police or something.

Gary L · 13-12-2008, 11:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by dgardner

Thanks for the quick reply and the prices are quite cheap but I should have mentioned i am in the uk and probably won't be able to import from us

Why not?
I order stuff off them all the time, so do a lot of UK people. it is free shipping, just takes a little longer.

sk8er_boi6000 · 13-12-2008, 22:33

Lockpicks are perfectly legal, as there can be legitimate uses for them.

**Hugh** · 14-12-2008, 17:12

As stated above, it's legal to own them, it's just the walking about with them if you are not a locksmith that could be problematic.

sk8er_boi6000 · 14-12-2008, 19:25

I do believe that although the police have the power to search you and confiscate it, the onus is on them to prove you where using it with criminal intent, not on you to prove otherwise.

Hom3r · 14-12-2008, 19:37

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lock_picking

United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, a person who carries a lock pick set (even a home made one) can be charged with the offence of "going equipped", unless they have a good reason for carrying them.[8] The penalty for this can be upward of 5 years' imprisonment. The arresting officer must have "reasonable cause".

sk8er_boi6000 · 14-12-2008, 19:39

Pretty much the point I was making? If the guy is a locksmith the police would never pin a charge of "going equipped" on him

Hom3r · 14-12-2008, 19:40

http://forums.hexus.net/general-disc...ckpicking.html

http://www.devonlocks.co.uk/shopping...n_page=privacy