Locksmith Company Investigated
Wednesday, Apr 23 - 09:49 AM Updated: 06:07 PM
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The following is an exact transcript of NBC 4's investigative report, exactly as it was shown on NBC 4 at 6 P.M. On April 24.
ANCHOR: It can be a time of desperation. You're locked out of your car or your home and you need help.
You wouldn't expect a locksmith to take advantage of your vulnerability, but you might be surprised about a complaint we investigated. Target 4's Patrick Preston investigates.
PRESTON: "It's $80 total. Can you do it for $54?" Preston said.
You're witnessing a locksmith adjusting his price. Thirty minutes ago, his company quotes us on the phone at at least $54.
PRESTON: "$39 just to come out and $15 to just unlock the doors?"
Now on the scene, Gal Ben Haim says the price to unlock this vehicle is actually $80. The extra $26 is like an insurance policy, in case he breaks something.
HAIM: "We can do a mistake. Maybe something, we can break. Not our fault, but we can make damage."
$80 seems high if you're expecting to pay less, but not to Bill Palmer.
PALMER: "I wasn't thinking. I just shut the doors and there was my keys."
The temperature outside was 20 degrees the morning Palmer locked his keys in his pickup truck.
He turned to the locksmith with the biggest ad in the phone book. A half-hour later, he found out how the company could afford the ad, when they showed him a bill for $149.
PALMER: "I told the guy, 'Hey man, this is ridiculous.'"
DON HOTT, owner of Worthington Locksmith: "In all the years I've been doing this, I have never charged anybody that kind of price, " said Don Hott.
The Better Business Bureau says complaints about locksmiths overcharging customers are common and the company most often cited in the U.S. — New York-based Dependable Locksmith.
But you won't find Dependable Locksmith's name in this ad.in fact, you won't find any name, which seems to be the way Dependable Locksmith likes it.
PRESTON: "You can't tell us anything about the company?"
Three times we called Dependable Locksmith for answers. And each time, the out-of-state phone operator refused to connect us to a company representative.
PRESTON: "Whoever you'd give the message to, I've left my name and number with you twice now."
They never did return our calls.
JOAN COUGHLIN, BBB: "They'll advertise locally in the yellow pages in communities all over the country under fake names, fake addresses."
Coughlin said customers who think they're calling a local locksmith are really getting a New York call center. The BBB issued a consumer warning against Dependable Locksmith and the dozens of aliases they use, including Superb Solutions, which the attorney general's office sued in 2006 for deceiving Cuyahoga County customers. The company was fined — but Dependable continues to operate in Ohio, aided by the lack of a licensing requirement for locksmiths.
PALMER: "I was in a bad situation and they took advantage of it."
Back on West Broad Street, Palmer reluctantly agreed to pay the $149 to get out of cold and into his truck. But he could have got a better deal with the same company.
LAUREN SCHMOLL, NBC 4 employee: "So, $39 for you to come out and unlocking it is actually $45?"
We sent an NBC 4 employee to the same location where Palmer was locked out. Dependable Locksmith quoted her a price of at least $54 on the phone. They charged her $84. Then we came back, to see if the price would change again.
Again, a meaningless $54 quote. A bill for $80. But when we question the extra costs, the employee agrees to lower the price to $60.
PRESTON: "I don't think you're going to break it."
EMPLOYEE: "How do you pay?"
PRESTON: "I'm sorry."
EMPLOYEE: "How do you pay? In cash?"
PRESTON: "I've got cash."
EMPLOYEE: "You pay cash?"
PRESTON: "Yeah."
EMPLOYEE: "We can do this."
Moments later, (the employee) spots our camera and we explain our efforts to contact his company by phone and now in person. He tells us employees are on commission and change the prices.
PRESTON: "How is it possible that one of your customers got charged $84 (and) another of your customers was charged $149?"
EMPLOYEE: "I don't know, my friend. I only work there. This is my price, what I charge. What other guys charge, God knows."
PRESTON: "If you had charged me $80, the extra $20 would have gone to you?"
EMPLOYEE: "Not exactly."
PRESTON: "How would that have worked? Would you have had to lose $20 if you only charged me $60?"
Gal Ben Haim refused to give us a way to contact his supervisors.instead, he told us to check the phone book for locksmith service.
That's where we found a different dependable alias — Locksmith 24 Hour Inc. — listed with several local addresses. But we didn't find any locksmith shops. Two of the addresses led us to restaurants.
The BBB advises customers to research a locksmith before they need one. Warning signs include an unwillingness to give out information about the company, including where they're located.
Worthington Locksmith owner Don Hott said most reputable locksmiths drive marked cars with the company's name on the side. Dependable Locksmith employees use unmarked cars.
Most locksmiths support licensing to weed out the bad seeds. The statehouse has passed a bill that would require locksmiths to be licensed.
It's now being considered by a Senate committee chaired by Upper Arlington Sen. Steve Stivers.
ANCHOR: Here's another money-saving tip, you can call AAA, make a credit card payment for $74. AAA will come unlock your car and give you a one-year basic membership. That year-long membership includes up to three additional service requests at no additional charge.
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