Scam Alerts
Nobody likes to be scammed, duped or ripped off. Unfortunately the the Locksmith trade is not without its share of companies trying to decieve you.
However, here are some tips to ensure that you do not become a victim. At the time of writing (Jan 09) the online directory Yell.com has a large number of dishonest Locksmith advertisements showing false addresses where companies claim to be trading from. If you choose a locksmith online from Yell, Google or any other search engine use the advice below to help you. Take great care who you choose.
- Do they show a true contact address (does it have a street number? does it have a vague address like 'Lock House, High Road, Anytown'?). When you telephone them ask for their address, if it's false or an out of area Call Centre they'll find it difficult to answer.
- Do they have a true local telephone number for the area (be very careful if they have 0800, 0845 or only mobile numbers). If you have a problem with one of these businesses how are you going to get the situation resolved if you only have a mobile number and a false trading address?
- If they have a website again check that they have a proper contact address, many of the sites don't have one!
- Are they a member of The Master Locksmith Association? You can check it for free online at: www.locksmiths.co.uk
- Do they have a Company Registration number? You can check this for free at Companies House.
- I have yet to find a credible reason why an honest company would try and hide any of the above information............
An example of this is here below, click it to enlarge in new window. This picture was taken from Yell.com's website.
Another deception that has been noticed lately is for companies to buy web addresses with the name of your town in the title to make it look as though they are local to you. For example, a company that comes from South London and wants to pick up trade in the Woodford area could easily buy the web address of www.locksmiths-of-woodford.co.uk in order to make you think they are in Woodford.