Surely it's as simple as calling the bank? they have fraud/scam teams
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Locksmith question
- Thread starter neocon
- Start date
That same company?
Sounds like a good one for Rogue Traders! Maybe they would be interested to hear from you.
Seriously though I would do everything in my power to get back at them by a) recovering money and b) making sure they suffer reputationally and legally and c) to try to help others not get done. Absolutely disgusting.
Seriously though I would do everything in my power to get back at them by a) recovering money and b) making sure they suffer reputationally and legally and c) to try to help others not get done. Absolutely disgusting.
Bet they took any evidence with them.
Soldato
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- London, UK
As someone who offers this service to my clients that is a complete and utter scam.
Call out is fine.
Labour to open the door is OTT, it does depend on what locks he had to defeat but that should be half that tops.
Without knowing the door and locks I can't say what it should cost but it looks like its a multipoint locking door which will likely have a euro cylinder. Now if the multipoint mechanism needed replacing then depending on the system they can range from £100 to £400+ but no way a locksmith carries the expensive end of the spectrum as that tends to be for either rare as only one company makes it or high security. Euro profile cylinders are not that expensive to trade but after mark up you should expect to be looking at £50-80.
Fitting and adjustment is OTT as well.
The fact they aren't VAT registered raises a red flag for me as well.
Sorry you dad got scammed. Hope he can get some of that back.
Call out is fine.
Labour to open the door is OTT, it does depend on what locks he had to defeat but that should be half that tops.
Without knowing the door and locks I can't say what it should cost but it looks like its a multipoint locking door which will likely have a euro cylinder. Now if the multipoint mechanism needed replacing then depending on the system they can range from £100 to £400+ but no way a locksmith carries the expensive end of the spectrum as that tends to be for either rare as only one company makes it or high security. Euro profile cylinders are not that expensive to trade but after mark up you should expect to be looking at £50-80.
Fitting and adjustment is OTT as well.
The fact they aren't VAT registered raises a red flag for me as well.
Sorry you dad got scammed. Hope he can get some of that back.
First thing I'd do is phone around a few other locksmiths to get an idea of what they'd charge to do the same job, my guess is they'll all quote you less but it should give you an idea of what it should have cost. I'd then phone the locksmiths who did the job, tell them who you are and that you think they've overcharged because other locksmiths quoted you between X & Y, see what they say the 'reasons' are for why they've charged £xxx more than what other smiths have quoted.Does £1456 sound too much for replacing a lock that had a front door key snapped in it? I think my elderly father was scammed.
![PXL-20240319-120258162-2.jpg[img]](https://i.ibb.co/ZL0PBfV/PXL-20240319-120258162-2.jpg[img])
From there I'd say it depends on how they deal with your query and the 'reasons' they give.
E: To be clear if that's a bog standard locksmith call out there's little question over whether they've taken advantage of your old man, however you really need to give them the chance to explain themselves and/or understand what, how, why they arrived at that price before you can challenge them.
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shocking feel for the old man, get it sorted.
Soldato
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We paid £75 for new lock, emergency call out, and that was on a bank holiday
You can't, unless you are on his account as someone they can speak to - best you can hope for, is to contact them whilst with him; explain his difficulties, and maybe they will be willing to deal with you after getting his approval.
My FIL isn't tech savvy and had his ebay account stolen, and they initially refused to deal with me, but after we called them and he did the initial bits, I was then able to take the lead and get things sorted.
Worth a punt, along with the great advice others have given - hopefully your old man won't give up hope, as standing his ground could save someone else this misfortune
So...Being bored I've been doing some digging, using the previous link to companies house, and this is what I've found: EVE SECURITY LTD changed director back in 2020 from Stefan Cochintu. But here's the interesting thing, if you search google for his name you get this LinkedIn profile where he list that he used to be a manager of AM London Locksmith. Search Google for AM London Locksmith and you get this BBC Watchdog article.
www.bbc.co.uk
e: And this...
www.islington.media
2nd e: Forgot to add a link to the guys LinkedIn profile.
BBC One - Watchdog - AM London Locksmith Limited
We investigate AM London Locksmith Ltd who are bringing misery to its customers.
e: And this...
Dodgy locksmith firm left with £16,500 bill for faking customer reviews and ripping off customers | Islington Council News
The dodgy directors of a locksmith’s company who ripped off customers and used photos of strangers from social media alongside fake customer reviews have been landed with fines, costs and compensation totalling more than £16,500.
www.islington.media
2nd e: Forgot to add a link to the guys LinkedIn profile.
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Soldato
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- 24 Sep 2007
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- 5,244
Let me update what I said earlier, and say that these guys are complete rip-off merchants and fraudsters, and yes it is scamming money out of vulnerable elderly people.
It looks like they have been done earlier for dodgy practice, and have had a name change ... that's the kind of thing to expect from these "companies".
To the OP, your Dad has certainly been ripped off and you have grounds to attempt to retrieve the money, although I expect that won't be easy.
It looks like they have been done earlier for dodgy practice, and have had a name change ... that's the kind of thing to expect from these "companies".
To the OP, your Dad has certainly been ripped off and you have grounds to attempt to retrieve the money, although I expect that won't be easy.
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It just goes to show that Checkatrade reviews are worthless:So...Being bored I've been doing some digging, using the previous link to companies house, and this is what I've found: EVE SECURITY LTD changed director back in 2020 from Stefan Cochintu. But here's the interesting thing, if you search google for his name you get this LinkedIn profile where he list that he used to be a manager of AM London Locksmith. Search Google for AM London Locksmith and you get this BBC Watchdog article.
BBC One - Watchdog - AM London Locksmith Limited
We investigate AM London Locksmith Ltd who are bringing misery to its customers.
e: And this...
Dodgy locksmith firm left with £16,500 bill for faking customer reviews and ripping off customers | Islington Council News
The dodgy directors of a locksmith’s company who ripped off customers and used photos of strangers from social media alongside fake customer reviews have been landed with fines, costs and compensation totalling more than £16,500.
Soldato
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- 3 Oct 2007
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- London, UK
All these websites end up advertising chancers, they are pretty much worthless imo. I would never hire someone just off the back of a site like that.
Does £1456 sound too much for replacing a lock that had a front door key snapped in it? I think my elderly father was scammed.
I locked myself out of my house a couple years ago.
Cost me £47 total for the guy to come around and replace the lock.
Associate
- Joined
- 13 Apr 2019
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- The cold wet North East of England
Yes, that's a total rip-off. Bloody cowboy tradesmen.
You can save yourself a lot of money by learning how to do basic locksmithing jobs. It really isn't rocket science.