Imagine stepping out of your house in the wee hours only to slam the door shut behind you! It can be incredibly frustrating to realize that you didn’t even grab your keys. In your moment of exasperation, it is possible that you are tempted to install smart locks from welock, kick open the door or try to pick the lock with the help of online videos.

Either one of these approaches is not only unhelpful but can also cause damage to your door locks. In the end, you will end up spending more money in fixing the damage you caused than you would have paid a locksmith to come open the door! 

Locksmiths are lock and key experts who understand the inner workings of a lock and can work their way in and out of a jammed or a closed door with the help of certain tools.

According to a locksmith in toronto, when you hire an experienced company, you can rest assured that they will cause little to no damage to your property when they are working on your locking systems.

However, what if in your rush to enter your home you hired an amateur? Without proper due diligence, it is quite possible that when you are Looking For OKC Locksmiths, you may bump into an inexperienced and unlicensed one before you reach a genuine expert. 

So what can you do to avoid that? This article will tell you how to safeguard yourself against common locksmith scams and what can you do to prevent them. 

No company specifics listed on the website

There are many locksmith “service providers” who are not a legit business at all. In fact, these are call centers that simply sub-contract the job as soon as they receive a distress call.

Mostly, these companies try to cover as much as geographical area as possible because they simply have to subcontract their work. If you see random company names that span across a broad area, then treat it as a red flag. 

They are reluctant to share the company details

More often than not, a real business will answer the call with their company name. However, if you hear someone using a vague greeting as they answer the phone, then you may be dealing with a third-party locksmith who is subcontracting its work to unlicensed and inexperienced professionals.

You want to check the legitimacy of the business you called? Just give them a call back and don’t be surprised if you are connected to a completely different organization on the same number! 

Getting transferred a lot

When your call lands into one of these locksmith call centers, they would have to reroute your call to a locksmith based on your area code. Therefore, you end up getting transferred around a number of time before reaching the right person.

Experts stated on https://www.strongholdlocksmiths.com/locksmith-paddington/ that this is another red that often goes unnoticed but should be taken into consideration if you want to hire a genuinely local locksmith. 

Unclear pricing

When you get connected to one of these locksmith conglomerates, you are basically dealing with a company that takes cuts from locksmiths who will actually be the ones to do the job.

However, since these are small businesses with limited sources of advertising, they partner with such call centers and don’t mind sharing profits for prospective leads. However, the problem arises when these locksmiths try to upcharge you so that they can make more than the price agreed with the locksmith conglomerate and rake in higher profits.

In this transaction, the consumer ends up being at the receiving end who often feels strong-armed into paying more than the agreed price due to unclear pricing and unscrupulous practices. 

They don’t have locksmith ID or insurance

This is the biggest giveaway when you are trying to spot a locksmith scam. When you hire the first company off internet, always be sure to ask for a locksmith ID, insurance, and license.

If the technician does not have these documents, then it is most certainly a scam or an amateur locksmith who should not be allowed to perform on your locks and property. 

Ask important questions

Before you allow a locksmith to enter your home, make sure they provide you detailed answers to questions like their location, information about their tools and practices, estimates, payment options, detailed company information etc.

Consider learning how to pick locks, as well. Get a quality lockpick set made by professionals and learn different lock picking techniques so you can take care of minor issues yourself.

Your potential locksmith should be able to answer all these questions confidently. If not, then you should take it to be a warning sign. 

With these tips, now you know how to spot an unprofessional locksmith and what you can do to avoid being scammed. So next time you want to hire a locksmith company for an urgent task, keep an eye out for these factors and only work with a truly local locksmith.