Phoenix Locksmith Fraud
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"They used my position and ignorance to price gouge me."
NOTE: Identity of Consumer Withheld at Their Request
I talked to you Tuesday at ~8:30AM. Please keep anything you post anonymous. I'm not sure how much of the story you wanted so here is everything.
I locked myself out of my house on the weekend at 4:45PM. I used my iPhone and Google maps to find a local locksmith. I ignored entries that did not have a web site. Comp[...] Locksmith (www.comp[...]locksmith.com) with the number (480)730-[xxxx] was the 5th place I tried. Previous numbers I called either took me to a voicemail, were invalid, or the locksmith wouldn't be able to come out for at least 1.5 hours.
I called them at 5:04PM. I said I needed home lockout service. I didn't ask for a price quote because never in a million years would I have thought scamming and price gouging existed in this industry. I would think there would be some type of government regulation to protect consumers. I gave them my name, address, and phone number. They told me I would get a call from a locksmith in 15 minutes.
At 5:24PM I received a call from the locksmith. He told me could be there in 30 minutes.
At 6:01PM he called me because he was close. He needed final directions (this seemed weird. Why didn't he have a GPS?). He arrived in a 4 dour sedan. He told me his van was in the shop. He was young and friendly.
On entering my garage he noticed my toys and we started talking about them and what he has. We have a shared sport. He was knowledgeable about the sport and we talked for several minutes about it. The guy was from Israel so he told me how it was different over there versus here for the sport.
He looked at my locks and told me they were good. He would most likely have to drill them but he would try picking them. Up front he told me the price was $180 ($35 service call, $145 to pick lock, and a $20 discount because we shared an interest). I had never used a locksmith and had no idea if this was a fair price. It was the weekend and evening so I figured there was a price premium. It took him ~4 minutes to pick the lock (very scary!).
When he wrote up the receipt he told me I could pay with credit, cash, or check. If I paid with cash or check he would not charge me tax. I went with check. When I saw the receipt I was really weirded out. There was no company name on it. It was a generic carbon copy receipt. He wrote "RCA" for the company and "877-291-[xxxx]" for the number. I inquired about the RCA name. I asked him I thought the name of the company was Comp[...] Locksmith. He told me there were some mergers and it was kind of confusing and he wasn't sure. On his departure he told me I should hide a key somewhere so I don't have to call him again. He also told me I could call his cell directly if I ever needed any other locksmith service.
Because the receipt left me feeling uncomfortable, I Googled the 877 number and one thing lead to another and I found references to Israeli locksmith scams. The guy that came to my house was Israeli so I became worried and wanted some other work quotes. That's how I came to find ACME Locksmith. I thought of doing a stop payment on the check but the guy knows where I live and what toys he could steal from my garage so I didn't do it.
I don't think I was scammed like the other Israeli scams. From what I've read, those involve an initial low quote. I never received a price quote over the phone. They used my position and ignorance to price gouge me.
This weekend I plan to call Comp[...] Locksmith again and ask for a quote to find out if they do quote a low price over the phone then raise it when they show up. I'm also seriously considering an alarm system now because I'm worried he or his friends may try to rob me.
Notes from ACME Locksmith
NOTE: Identity of Consumer Withheld at Their Request
I talked to you Tuesday at ~8:30AM. Please keep anything you post anonymous. I'm not sure how much of the story you wanted so here is everything.
I locked myself out of my house on the weekend at 4:45PM. I used my iPhone and Google maps to find a local locksmith. I ignored entries that did not have a web site. Comp[...] Locksmith (www.comp[...]locksmith.com) with the number (480)730-[xxxx] was the 5th place I tried. Previous numbers I called either took me to a voicemail, were invalid, or the locksmith wouldn't be able to come out for at least 1.5 hours.
I called them at 5:04PM. I said I needed home lockout service. I didn't ask for a price quote because never in a million years would I have thought scamming and price gouging existed in this industry. I would think there would be some type of government regulation to protect consumers. I gave them my name, address, and phone number. They told me I would get a call from a locksmith in 15 minutes.
At 5:24PM I received a call from the locksmith. He told me could be there in 30 minutes.
At 6:01PM he called me because he was close. He needed final directions (this seemed weird. Why didn't he have a GPS?). He arrived in a 4 dour sedan. He told me his van was in the shop. He was young and friendly.
On entering my garage he noticed my toys and we started talking about them and what he has. We have a shared sport. He was knowledgeable about the sport and we talked for several minutes about it. The guy was from Israel so he told me how it was different over there versus here for the sport.
He looked at my locks and told me they were good. He would most likely have to drill them but he would try picking them. Up front he told me the price was $180 ($35 service call, $145 to pick lock, and a $20 discount because we shared an interest). I had never used a locksmith and had no idea if this was a fair price. It was the weekend and evening so I figured there was a price premium. It took him ~4 minutes to pick the lock (very scary!).
When he wrote up the receipt he told me I could pay with credit, cash, or check. If I paid with cash or check he would not charge me tax. I went with check. When I saw the receipt I was really weirded out. There was no company name on it. It was a generic carbon copy receipt. He wrote "RCA" for the company and "877-291-[xxxx]" for the number. I inquired about the RCA name. I asked him I thought the name of the company was Comp[...] Locksmith. He told me there were some mergers and it was kind of confusing and he wasn't sure. On his departure he told me I should hide a key somewhere so I don't have to call him again. He also told me I could call his cell directly if I ever needed any other locksmith service.
Because the receipt left me feeling uncomfortable, I Googled the 877 number and one thing lead to another and I found references to Israeli locksmith scams. The guy that came to my house was Israeli so I became worried and wanted some other work quotes. That's how I came to find ACME Locksmith. I thought of doing a stop payment on the check but the guy knows where I live and what toys he could steal from my garage so I didn't do it.
I don't think I was scammed like the other Israeli scams. From what I've read, those involve an initial low quote. I never received a price quote over the phone. They used my position and ignorance to price gouge me.
This weekend I plan to call Comp[...] Locksmith again and ask for a quote to find out if they do quote a low price over the phone then raise it when they show up. I'm also seriously considering an alarm system now because I'm worried he or his friends may try to rob me.
Notes from ACME Locksmith
- The "locksmith" arrived in a non-marked vehicle. This is a BIG red flag.
- The "locksmith" said the locks were high quality and most likely would need to drilled. This is another BIG red flag. It conveys that the "locksmith" did not have the skills to pick a common house lock. However, the "locksmith" did manage to pick this one in 4 minutes, so what did he mean when he said they were very high quality?
- The "locksmith" quoted the price before doing any work. This consumer at least knew what he was going to get billed. Very often the hidden opening price of $145 is never revealed to the consumer.It should be mentioned that this consumer was charge about 3 times what a reputable company would charge for this service.
- The "locksmith" told the consumer he would not have to pay sales tax if he paid by cash or check. This is a BIG red flag. Service calls (i.e. no parts sold) are never taxed in Arizona. If parts were sold and the offer made, this "locksmith" would be guilty of tax fraud.
