24/7 Locksmith On Call

Case Description: I accidentally locked myself out of the house. When I initially called, I was told a technician was nearby, he would call me in 15 minutes or less and that the cost was usually $59 but could be more, that I would be told beforehand if it was more and what that cost would be. After 25 minutes with no word from the technician, I called back. I was told they would call him directly and have him call me. About 10-15 minutes later, he finally calls and says he'll be there in about 35 minutes. Closer to an hour later, he actually shows up and takes less than a minute to open my door. Nothing was said about it costing more than the $59 I was told over the phone, so I assumed that was the cost. While he processed my card, he wanted me to get mail with my name and address on it. He didn't have any receipt books with empty pages so he asked to email the receipt. He did and was already gone when I got it. The bill was for $275.35. I was shocked to say the least. I called to dispute the charge and found out that this seems to be some kind of on call business that sends subcontractors out to do the work as the business name on the receipt was for SNJ Locksmith Services. They didn't seem to know who the they called out and that they had to figure out who the technician was so they could see what the deal was with that charge. I looked for this SNJ Locksmith Services online and couldn't find them. I googled the address and Google maps shows a residence, rather than a business. I also found out after that other locksmith services in the area charge a flat $60 fee for unlocking a door in my neighborhood. I called my bank and stopped payment on the charge. I will happily pay $60, but I feel like I was taken advantage of and it felt like a scam. At the very least, this is a company that needs to be more careful about the technicians they send out to represent them.

Initial installation was fine. 5 months later, the lock came loose. I tried calling the company and they could not find my receipt. Then I was told by "Cynthia" that they had approximately a one month warranty on service and we "probably" did something to it.

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