Locksmith scams: how to spot them (and avoid them)

Emergency locksmithing is one of the sectors where abuse is most common. Taking advantage of stress and urgency, some inflate bills, invent repairs or replace a perfectly repairable lock. Here's how to recognise a scam — and how to protect yourself.

The warning signs

• No price on the phone. "We can't know until we see it." For a standard slammed door, a serious professional can give a range straight away.
• The price explodes on site. The quote goes from single to triple once the technician is in front of the door.
• Systematic replacement. You're told everything "must be changed" when a simple opening would have done.
• Pressure. You're pushed to decide right away, with no written quote, sometimes by playing on fear.
• No itemised invoice, or cash payment demanded before the work is even done.

The classic emergency trap

The scenario repeats itself: a number found at the top of the search results, a reassuring voice, a technician who arrives fast… then a bill with no relation to the problem. Many of these numbers are lead-generation platforms, not craftsmen. They subcontract and take their margin — hence the soaring prices.

How to protect yourself

Before the work

• Ask for a firm price on the phone, and write it down.
• Ask whether you're speaking to the craftsman who will actually come, or to a call centre.
• Check there's a real company behind it: a name, a company registration number, insurance.

During the work

• Insist on a quote before any action. As long as nothing is signed, nothing starts.
• Refuse a replacement if an opening is enough — ask them to explain.
• If in doubt, you have the right to refuse and to pay only the call-out fee quoted.

After the work

• Ask for an itemised invoice: labour, parts, call-out.
• Keep everything: it's your recourse in case of a dispute.

Your rights, in brief

An accepted quote is binding: the final price cannot exceed what was agreed without your written consent. For work at your home, you also benefit from a protective legal framework. In case of abuse, you can report the professional to the DGCCRF (the French consumer-protection authority).

Transparency isn't a marketing argument: it's the baseline. A price quoted, honoured, justified on the invoice. The rest are excuses.

At Les Artisans Serruriers Porte-Bonheur, we've made these principles our default way of working. Not because it's original — because it should be the norm.