Run Local Locksmith

I had much the same experience as others here:
* First call said he would be there in 20 minutes. Called back 45 minutes later to say it would be another 20 minutes until he arrived.
* When he arrived, the estimate written was for $ 19 to rekey each of two locks, plus $ 25 labor. I figured the $ 19 must be for materials like tumblers or something.
* When he finished, the locksmith got upset because I only had a credit card, not cash or a check. He then informs me there is a 10% surcharge for a credit card.
* He only gives me one key for one of the locks because he doesn’t have a second blank for that type of lock.
* He calls in the authorization and they ask him how much for parts. He says, «Nothing — rekeying only.» If there are no parts, and there is only labor, why is there a charge for «rekey» AND a charge for «labor» at $ 25 per rekey?
It seems to me he didn’t want to take a credit card because he knows people can dispute charges with the credit card company. These guys are pure crooks — be careful!
Note — I found them through Google, under «$ 15 Ann Arbor Locksmith —
; RunLocalLocksmith was on the receipt.

We were overcharged for a door lock install. Very shady, no business card, do not use.

DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY!!! They have an «F» from the Better Business Bureau. The locksmiths scam you (much like others have reported, you will overpay by almost 3 times the amount you were told by the dispatcher and you will be told to use cash). If you seek a refund (like I did), they will put you on hold for long periods of time and suggest that you leave a voicemail for their supervisor, who won’t call you back. The people running this company are scumbags and it needs to be shut down.

Bait n Switch.
Avoid this company at all cost.
They were unable to estimate the work cost ahead of time
Locksmith showed up with alcohol on his breathe
Took less than 3 mins to unlock the door and charged over $ 135
The lady on the phone advised that all major credit cards were accepted except for AMEX. When the technician arrived he advised it was cash only.
I recommend finding another company to do business with there BBB rating shows massive amount of complaints with no resolution.
Wish I could give this 0 Stars
They do business with several different phone numbers, beware !!!

i got locked out of my house in 20 degree weather. Thankfully I had my gloves, because it took 2 hours for them to get there. It cost $ 189 for the five minutes of work, plus the $ 15 fee to come to the call (which covers… nothing?). Not surprising that all of the other reviews to date have been one star as well.

It’s such a nightmare to call this company — WHAT A BIG SCAMMER — Runlocal Lock Smith Inc —
…
I got lockout last weekend, and searched this company which is on the first top list in Yahoo. I called and was quoted $ 15 for the service call and $ 35 or up for the lockout service. I checked to the operator very carefully that how much to charge for one regular front doorknob and I be told that’s started from $ 35. I believed plus $ 15 dollar that would turn to $ 50 — Which is make sense. Meanwhile I did call another locksmith to get the price check which charge fixed price $ 60.
As the Run Local Locksmith $ 10 cheaper than another, i had them to come over. The operator told me I would receive a call back in 15 min from a technician, and when the technician called (area code 206 WA) he said he would be my place within 30min.
1 hour later, finally the technician was here, but not the one who called me! Anyway, he checked the doorknob, and started to say something like «O… your lock is difficult to open, you want to damage the lock, or you want to keep the lock?» and i asked what could he do for $ 50 dollars? He said nothing, and told me to pay $ 185 for the open lock service, and he even showed me couple invoices that other people had paid the $ 185 too! I checked to him if any big favor he could do, and he said he would give me another $ 5 discount which’s total $ 180. IT’S STILL TOO MUCH FOR THE LOCKSMITH!!! He said without that price, he’s not able to open up my lock!
Then I called another Locksmith who charge fixed price $ 60 to come over. After I hung up the call, the Technician started to say he could do it in $ 50 dollar by his own but not report to the company, and offered to waive me the service call fee $ 15. What I pay for him just $ 50. However, I REFUSED the offer since this company and the guy are not honest at all. Then the Tech. kept bugging me not to pay for $ 75 for the locksmith, and let him finish the job in $ 50 — how ridiculous he forgot he tried to charge me for $ 180! At the end, he charged $ 15 for the service call fee, and I asked him to leave!
This company is a complete rip-​off and wasted my time! While calling a locksmith for sure the service is needed right away, but what this company does is helpless !!! That’s very bad to have this company serve around in different states! They have lot of negative reviews in Unilocal and Complains Board, but it’s weird by searching their company name, I find nothing from Unilocal. Those bad reviews are all hided?

Agreed. NEVER EVER CALL this company. they «operate» in NYC too. we were trapped in our bed room (knob broken from inside) and called for the lock on the front door to be picked so they could turn the handle on our bedroom door from outside and let us out. they said the technician would call us back with an estimate/​assessment before performing work. instead he just went ahead and picked the lock (under 5 min) let us out of the bedroom, and charged $ 180 + $ 15 service fee.
when I called to inquire about the exorbitant charge, versus the «starting at» $ 35 on their website, no explanation was provided. they just kept saying «it all depends on the security and situation» even after explaining the situation, low security, and short time of job. I guess I should have argued on the spot with the guy that picked the lock after he had already performed the work while I was in my PJs?
Never call, never sign and never pay these guys!

If I could also give ZERO stars to this company… I would! They were ‘shady’ to begin with… not able to quote me a price and the reason they don’t is so that they can overcharge you once they arrive. The guy didn’t even really try to pick my door lock and within few minutes he drilled my lock. Even though this got back into my apt, he charged me over $ 200…outrageous! After consulting with several other local locksmith businesses they have all shared that this company is awful and I got ripped off. Don’t ever use them!!!

I used this service in Alexandria, VA and it is a pure rip off… on the site they say basic lock out services start at $ 35 but the guy who came to my home charged me $ 165 to basically use that pump thing in my door for all of three seconds. I called the customer service number and she said each technician gets to decide based on the complexity of the job. So, you’re telling me opening a basic door non-​deadbolt lock without even having to pick it or rekey is $ 165? Don’t get ripped off by this company too.

WORST ADVERTISING and BUSINESS TACTICS EVER! They baited me telling me with a low service fee of $ 15 dollars and then a quote of lock rekeys costing $ 19 and up, depending on the number of cylinders on the lock, which was lower than other locksmiths companies $ 25 – 35 price range. The RunLocal Locksmith (although professional) then told me it would cost $ 45 per lock. I asked him what kind of lock he would rekey for $ 19, and he told me one doesn’t exist. He admitted they get this kind of complaint all the time, as the prices are much higher than their «starting rates.» When I called the head office to complain and ask what the explain that the «$ 19 and up» was false advertising, he said it wasn’t. When I questioned him directly, asking what rekey was $ 19, he said, «Well, maybe a bathroom door or something.» Really? A bathroom door? Does he even know that you can’t rekey bathroom doors??? A HUGE ripoff. I paid him his $ 15 service fee, but I will never call them again, and I would not recommend them to ANYONE!
I want my money back! They KNEW they were ripping people off and I called today and they STILL said «19 and up» to my ear! Don’t ever use them!

If I could possibly give ZERO stars, I would. Like Lauren M., I had a nightmare experience with this stupid company. I got locked out of my house last weekend when I was going out to my car to get something – so I had no phone, no wallet, nothing. I was in slippers and pajamas. (I had my car keys, but the house key was inside – another story relating to another locksmith, Mario’s, who you SHOULD use if you are in San Fran.) Anyway, I ended up having to go to the neighbor’s house and borrowing his phone, and this place was the first number that popped up in the Google search for 24-​hour locksmiths (it was a Sunday and most of the local places were closed), so I called. I knew I would get ripped off, I just didn’t know how badly. It took over an hour for the locksmith to get there (during which time I was sitting outside, cold, in my pajamas and slippers). He then informed me it would cost $ 169 if he could pick the lock, and more if he had to replace the lock. I was instantly furious (a local locksmith – Mario’s – had come to work on that door the day before and I had only paid $ 80 for a job that took him well over an hour to complete) but I was so desperate (outside, cold, pajamas, no phone, no wallet) that I just didn’t feel like it was an option to start all over again. (If I had had my phone, I would have told him to go f*** himself and I would have… waiting outside or not.) Well, it gets better. Fortunately he was able to pick the lock – which took all of 30 seconds for him to do – but then the total bill was $ 208 because, on top of the asinine $ 169 for the 30 seconds of work, they charge you $ 24 for the «service call»…whatever that means. I guess $ 169 just isn’t enough to cover somebody calling him out, or him driving there? I have never been so mad. It’s already been a week and I am still seeing red. Never, EVER use this company, EVER.

Do NOT trust this company! I asked them to come by and install a Biometric (fingerprint access) lock on my front door. The first locksmith they sent out said he couldn’t install a Biometric lock, so at least they didn’t charge me for the visit. But the second «locksmith» didn’t know either, installed it incorrectly, as I found out when I tried to get it to work.
They charged $ 200, but when I called the CEO of the manufacturer he told me 1) the charge for installation by a locksmith is on average $ 100, and 2) the locksmith who installed mine ignored the simple procedure required to determine if the lock had been installed correctly. So when I called the company (888−686−3088) to have them send out a locksmith to install the lock correctly, they told me I didn’t have a warranty from them, and I needed to call their Claims Department (which I will do tomorrow, since it is closed for the day).
I’m reporting them to BBB, and will make sure they are held accountable.

Goodness, wish I would have looked at reviews before falling into this sham! Classic bait-​and-​switch!!! I used the San Antonio location.
The dispatcher quoted me $ 15 (service fee) to come out and $ 19 (for re-​key). The guy came out and told me $ 15 + $ 45 + $ 75. Almost a 300% difference. No way! Then he starts negotiating down. I told him no – it didn’t seem right when I was quoted such a low figure. Says he’d only leave if I give him the $ 15 service fee.
I called back to the number I originally called. They wouldn’t put the dispatcher who took my first call on the phone. Wouldn’t give me names of people with whom I was speaking. They just all said «Well we don’t know who quoted you 15 and 19.» «We don’t know where you got those numbers.» «We don’t do anything for that cheap.» «You need to pay him the $ 15.» I told them I would report them to the BBB for the bait-​and-​switch and call the police if this man doesn’t leave my home. They simply said, «Go ahead, but you need to pay the guy his $ 15.» Finally the guy left.
In reality, I think the guy showed up and saw the BMW sitting in my driveway and a mom by herself and thought he could take advantage. Shame on them!!! This company should be put out of business!

Worst lock smith ever!!! They operate in CA, where I had the misfortune of using them. When I called they said that it would cost $ 45 to open a lock and that they were the cheapest in town… lies! They said they would be out to my apt in 15 minutes… they guy arrived 65 minutes later (oh yea I had to wait outside in the rain). When the guy got to my door he said it would cost $ 145 per lock (my dead bolt and door knob were locked), totally not what they quoted me for. With fees it cost me $ 205 to get in to my house. Avoid this company at all costs!

Horrible and unsafe experience dealing with this company.
My roommate locked herself out of her bedroom tonight and I called this company (9 o’clock on a Sunday there aren’t many options) to come help her get in. The man they sent to our house bullied us, was extremely aggressive, called my roommate a «cry baby» and made me feel extremely unsafe in my own home. My roommate called her mother to question the charges and during this time he yelled over the phone to her mother, calling her stupid for locking herself out of her room and questioning his prices. He was extremely agitated that we questioned the high prices he quoted for a 30 second job. (270 dollars for him to pick a lock, he breaks the lock and now she doesn’t have a door knob) He told us we could get a «free» doorknob for another 50 dollars but it would be free because he wouldn’t charge us for labor (a basic doorknob that we had would be 20 dollars in a hardware store). The breakdown of the cost was 165 for him to unlock the door and 90 dollar service fee. I promise you there was nothing irrational or rude about our questions and yet he threw a tantrum, took my credit card and stormed out of the house. I had to follow him to make sure he didn’t leave with my card. He continued to cuss us out during the billing process
Now this man knows where I live and to top it off not even locking the doors will keep us safe if he decides to come back and give us another piece of his mind. And after our first encounter with him this seems to me like a genuine possibility.

I’ll try to keep this as brief and succinct as possible. It’s a long story.
I needed a key made for my car because I lost it. I called Run Local and made an appointment for a technician to meet me at the car and make a new key. The technician was almost three hours late, and didn’t call once. Once he got there, he broke my door in the process of making my key. (I didn’t realize it was broken until after he left.) He gave me a key, and took my $ 180 in cash, for which he would not give me a receipt. The key would not start the car, or even let me into the car because the lock on the door was broken. I had to pay to have the car towed to a nearby dealership where I paid to have another key made. At this point, I’m out over 400 dollars, and I have to get into my car through the trunk.
I called Run Local to see what sort of solution they would propose to make this right for me and was transferred to Juan in the claims department. Juan suggested that he send a technician out to fix the door. I said okay. We made an appointment for the next Monday morning at 10 am. At 10:15 am on Monday morning, I hadn’t heard anything from run-​local, or the technician. I called Run Local to confirm that someone was on their way. The girl I spoke with gave me the technician’s phone number and told me to call him and confirm myself. I called the technician and found that it was the same idiot who messed my door up in the first place. I was willing to look past this fact, but the idiot started yelling at me and telling me that I didn’t know what I was talking about and that he didn’t have a 10 am appointment scheduled.
I called Juan and told him what happened, at which point he admitted that this particular idiot (never got his name) is the only technician they have in Houston, and that if I wanted my door fixed, he’d be the one to do it. I refused to even speak to this incredibly rude and incompetent technician again, and asked what other options I might have. He suggested that I could take the car to a shop and get an estimate done, which he «might» be able to approve. Being that this was the only option I had, I took the car to my local, trusted repair shop who told me that I’d have to pay $ 140 to get the estimate done because they’d have to disassemble the door. Before paying this, I decided to call Juan and be sure that this would be covered. I called him back and left a voicemail explaining the latest developments and asking for a return call. That was almost two weeks ago.
I’ve called him several times since, and left one more voicemail. Still, nothing. I decided, just now, to call the ‘1−888′ number on Run Local’s website, just to see if I could get in touch with anyone else who could help me now that Juan has apparently relieved himself of any responsibility with regard to my case. After explaining basically the entire story to Will, I was passed on to Jordan, the call center manager. Jordan got on the phone with me and immediately said «there’s nothing we can do for you sir, you don’t have insurance.» I don’t even know what he meant by that. I asked if he could get me in touch with anyone else who could be of assistance, and after saying no to his repeated suggestions to leave a voicemail for Juan, Jordan told me that he is the highest person in the company who I could speak with, and that his company could not do anything for me.
I’ve phrased the above story as succinctly as possible. What you won’t know from reading the above is the disdain in the voices of those at run-​local whom I merely asked to right their wrong. This has been, by far, the worst customer service experience I’ve ever received, for any product or service. I am blown away by the fact that they have my $ 180, I had to pay a tow truck and to get another key made, I have to get into my car through the trunk until I can come up with the money to get the door fixed on my own, and I have since been treated rudely rather than receiving even a single apology. I will never do business with this company again, and will not allow anyone I know to do so either.
Do yourself a favor and avoid the chance of this happening to you. Call someone else.

I just had the most horrible morning dealing with these folks. I am out of Minneapolis, and my tenant texted me this morning (she lives about 40 miles away from me) that her door wouldn’t lock (usually it is the other way around, the door won’t open because you locked your keys inside)… her key wouldn’t work at all in the door, and she had to get to work.
So I was driving to work myself, I googled «locksmith city, state» (but put in the city and state of the condo). They had their phone number available, and it was a local number, so I called that.
What I found out is that it dials to their main office in MI. They, in turn, get a hold of a technician within 15 minutes of the location of the «lockout» or «lockin»… and «dispatch» him to the place.
But I didn’t know that at the time.
They promised me that within 20 – 30 minutes the technician would be there. They didn’t even CALL the technician for 38 minutes… my tenant needed to get to work, it was a disaster. Stressful all around.
I talked to Jordan there, he was the «manager» and said that no one was above him except the owner, and that the owner doesn’t talk to customers. The owner has a foreign name, Meni something or the other…
But before I talked to Jordan I talked to a rude lady who put me on hold in the middle of a sentence, and didn’t even tell me that she was putting me on hold! And when I called back later, she did the exact same thing! AGAIN!
After all this mess, Jordan said «the most I can offer you is a discount» — he wouldn’t even offer me an apology. It is now 3 hours since my initial call, and the technician finally arrived. The technician was quick with the replacement of the front door lock, although he took a while to get there.
But I refused to pay for anything but the lock that he replaced… The service was bad. And when I explained to Jordan that they would have to pay for the technician’s services, he couldn’t comprehend that. He said that isn’t the way he works. The technician would go and take the new lock out! What a mess!!!
I am so frustrated and my blood is just boiling over this incident. They did give me a discount but I am so tempted to call my credit card company and not let it go through…
Please don’t use this company. They do not offer customer service whatsoever, and they lie about what they will do (in terms of time limits, etc). And in this economy, that is what is going to win my business: good service. Please don’t lie to me. I have money to spend. I have 5 properties that I rent out. I could have been a repeat customer if this ended on a good note. I will take my money elsewhere in the future. If I was not on my way to work, I would have took the time to search Google or Yahoo for a local company not a «mobile dispatcher» from another state.
From my understanding it costs like $ 15 or $ 19 for this company to send the technician out… so they are more of a referral service if I understand correct… that is how they make their money.

Run Local — NOT! I got a foreign service charge on my credit card bill from Canada. Despite the Centerline, Michigan address on the invoice, a Canadian company charged my card for $ 4.78 more than written on the invoice and with another $ 3 and change in foreign service charges.
The customer service rep said it would cost $ 15 to come out and probably $ 35 to open the door. Well, try 3 times that amount. My tab came to $ 140. This company SCAMS you when you need help. A truly awful experience! I hope carma comes back around and kicks the owner of this company while he is down.

Beware is right. I’m half tempted to sue the company in small claims court, but I really don’t want to waste any more time or money on them.
I was out in the cold for 45min waiting for the locksmith to arrive, despite their 15min arrival guarantee. When the locksmith arrived in his unmarked van, I showed him my front door (with 2 locks) and the screen door in the back that locked behind me. He told me he couldn’t open the screen door and would have to charge me for both locks on the front.
30min go by and I interrupt to ask how things are going… he tells me he cant open the deadbolt because something is stuck inside it, but he was able to unlock the lock on the handle. He then says me he’ll have to charge me for the one lock — of course, i can’t pay him because my wallet is locked inside. (not that would have anyways, considering he still didn’t get me into the house)
So walks around back and within five minutes open the screen door. We go inside and he shows me that there is some metal in the deadbolt and that’s why he cant open it. His claim is that someone must have tried to break in. He clearly broke his own tool in the lock. If he hadn’t, he would have been the one who came up to me and said ‘ill have to drill the deadbolt’ — he spent 30min trying to fix his own mistake.
So, here I am with a 165 $ bill and a front door deadbolt that I can’t open with a key anymore. I made the mistake of signing the invoice which says that I was satisfied with service– which prevented me from getting a refund from my credit card company. Then again, when a shady locksmith in an unmarked van totally screws me over and lies to my face, I’m not about to start a confrontation with the guy in my living room.
To make matters worse, I realize he broke the lock on the screen door after the fact. So I’m out 165 $, plus i have to pay a real locksmith to pull the piece of metal from the deadbolt, plus i have to install a new screen door lock.