Tips to Avoid Locksmith Scams

locksmith scam

If you have ever been locked out of your home or car and are frantically looking for a locksmith online, beware. There are many stories of people who are scammed by fraudulent locksmiths. Avoid the temptation to call the first locksmith company that you find. So, just take a pause and think sensibly before you start contacting.

Be Vigilant, Informed and Safe

There are several cases of locksmith fraud in the past few years. Thus, it is important that you stay vigilant, informed and safe.

Read below to find tried and tested tips that help in avoiding scams by a fraudulent locksmith.avoid scam

  1. Do thorough research to ensure they are a legal locksmith company. Before contacting a locksmith, conduct advanced research to make sure that you are calling a legal business. Most of the time, phony locksmiths don’t publish their physical addresses in order to keep safe. If you find that a locksmith doesn’t have any physical address in their advertisement, you should probably avoid contacting them.
  2. Be proactive and ready in case the need arises. There is no need to wait until you are locked out on a chilly night to contact a locksmith. Do your research and collect contact numbers of a few genuine locksmiths if you ever might need one. Always make sure to keep those numbers in your phone, purse, wallet, and car.
  3. Go through their reviews. The simplest technique to ensure the legitimacy of a locksmith you wish to contact us by going through their online reviews. However, make sure that you find the reviews of genuine users and not marketing ones. If too many reviews are rated at one or two stars, you should find another locksmith. Another type of a good review is sites that provide lists of the best locksmiths in town as in our case for our Indianapolis branch by the site Locksmith Reviewed.
  4. Always ask the business to verify their location. Be cautious of businesses that answer calls with regular phrases such as ‘locksmith services’ instead of using a particular name. Look for another locksmith company if a locksmith is unable to tell you a legal service name. Make certain to crosscheck the address a locksmith offers you to find out if there is another business using the same address.
  5. Validate the locksmith license and identification: Always remember to request the ID of a locksmith, along with their license. This is important because in various locations it is an offense to either market or work as a locksmith without holding necessary certifications.
  6. Inquire frankly regarding any extra locksmith charges. It is a common practice among fraudulent locksmiths to promise a low charge. However, later they may suddenly escalate their prices once they are on site. It is suggested that you ask them beforehand if there are any hidden charges.
  7. Make certain that estimates and actual costs match. When you are consulting with a locksmith, request an estimate. Take your time and ask relevant questions and when the services are rendered, evaluate with the actual cost. If there is a huge difference, check with their head office. 
  8. Be cautious and examine the vehicle of your locksmith. After your locksmith has arrived, check if they are using a marked or unmarked, or suspicious vehicle. There are several cases in which fraudulent locksmiths declare to be linked with a reputed company, but are not. Locksmith businesses that are legitimate often have marked vehicles.
  9. Don’t fall for locksmith tricks. If a locksmith forces you to allow them to break your window or break a door to get a lock undone, don’t allow them. Most frauds will always say that your car or home lock is outdated and needs a replacement. They might request extra cash to replace the lock with one they may claim to be of high-quality high security in order to fool you. However, in a real sense, they might be installing a cheap lock that will hardly offer any protection.
  10. Make sure to get the pricing in black and white. It is best to get pricing written in black and white so that when the job is done, you are not charged any extra money. In cases of locksmith scams, fraud locksmiths often harass the client for more cash.
  11. Don’t be in a hurry to pay until the job is done successfully. If you are not happy with the work done by the locksmith, you can get in touch with their company to make sure that it is done to your satisfaction. There are cases in which locksmiths scratch your car or door when working on the locks.
  12. Check the functioning of your lock and key system before paying. When the locksmith has finished the task, make sure that you are able to use the keys. Once you are satisfied that the keys are working, you are set!
  13. Pay with your credit card, if possible. In several fraud cases, locksmiths may request the client to pay in cash because it is an easy way to get away with the money. Always try using a credit card in case you need to dispute the charges.

These are a few of the tips that you should practice in order to avoid getting scammed by a locksmith. However, if you do get ripped off, don’t ignore it. Get in touch with the appropriate consumer forum and write reviews online or anywhere you think they will be noticed by potential clients. You can also consider lodging a police complaint if you have suffered a major loss.

Be Wary! Don’t Fall into Locksmith Scams

Many people believe that it is convenient to search for a locksmith online but they never realize that frauds copy legitimate locksmiths in order to look genuine. Such locksmiths don’t own a shop and they don’t even have any skills. If you want to avoid hiring an unqualified locksmith or burglar to help rectify your lock issues, always make sure that you run thorough research to make the right choice!

Contact Get- Locksmith today for highly qualified, reliable locksmiths. Get-Locksmith offers locksmith services for your home, car, and business, call today and we will send a locksmith your way!