Very Disappointed -- Beware of the "Free Estimate" at Roni's locksmith St. Augustine.
I am extremely disappointed with Roni's locksmith and feel that customers should know exactly what happened.
My mother came back from out of town and found the battery on her security lock died while she was away. When the locksmith arrived, he told her that he would have to drill through her very expensive lock and it would cost $225. My mother then mentioned the sliding glass door in the back and he said that it would be a more difficult and costly option.
At that point, my mother decided not to have either option done. She was then charged $75 service fee despite the website offering free estimates. When I contacted him, I asked him if he mentioned the fee before he came out and he did not.
When my husband and I arrived, ready to drill through this massive lock, I decided to check YouTube to see if there was an easier less damaging option. The first video I watched, literally 1min 47sec long, showed us how to pop the sliding glass door open with no damage. It took 3 minutes and a flathead screwdriver. I'm a waitress, no locksmith experience or special tools. If it was this easy for me to do it, why did he try and charge her $225 to break her security lock, which would cost her another couple hundred dollars to replace? Then he proceeds to charge her a $75 service fee simply for driving out there and wasting 3 minutes of his time.
My mother is 74 years old and I believe he was taking advantage of her in her time of need. If you offer "free estimates" customers should not be surprised with a $75 service fee without letting the customer know before you come out. Furthermore,if there is a simple, non-destructive option available, I would expect a professional locksmith to at least explore it before recommending breaking a costly lock.
Unfortunately, based on our experience, I cannot recommend this company. Customers should ask very clearly about service-call fees and what "free estimate" actually means before agreeing to have someone come out. I'm outraged that he would take advantage of my elderly mother. My advice don't bother with this company, they're clearly crooks.
As far as the comment from the owner, either the technician lied about who he works for or he's lying. Funny how I immediately got a text from the technician after I posted this saying he's going to delete it anyways. read more