Crime & Safety

Locksmith Defends Business Practices after Verbal Disagreement

A Winder police officer recently responded to a verbal disagreement over the cost of locksmith services.

A locksmith defended his business practices recently following a verbal disagreement over the cost of services.

On Dec. 21, 2011, a officer with the was dispatched to the station at 141 N. Broad St. in response to a verbal dispute.

Upon arrival, the officer met with the complainant, who said she had locked her keys in her car at the gas pumps and had contacted a locksmith with Mega Lock. The complainant said she was told there would be a charge of $20 for services.

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Once the locksmith arrived and unlocked her vehicle, the complainant said he gave her a bill for $150 — a $20 trip fee and $130 for labor.

When the officer spoke with the Mega Lock representative, he said he told the complainant he would charge $20 to come out but didn’t give her any additional information.

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The locksmith said fees vary for different cars and he doesn't know what he's going to charge until he sees the vehicle.

According to an incident report, the officer told the locksmith that was a very misleading business practice and he replied, "Everyone says it's misleading but it's not.”

The officer then told the locksmith he couldn't give a customer one price over the phone and then charge a significantly different fee after he completing the work.

The locksmith said he would fix the problem to prevent further misunderstandings and would only charge the complainant $20. When the officer retrieved the complainant’s keys from the locksmith, the locksmith asked if the officer was going to lock the keys in the car.

“I asked him why I would do that and he stated because she only paid $20.00 he wanted the keys locked back in the car,” the officer wrote in a report.

The officer refused.

 “I did not feel it was right to make (the complainant) wait longer to get another locksmith out when the car was already unlocked and I also felt (the locksmith) attempted to take advantage of (the complainant) with faulty business practices,” the officer wrote in a report.

Have you experienced a similar situation with local businesses? Tell us in comments.


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