A new warning has been issued by the Better Business Bureau about a nation-wide scam that involves phony locksmiths.

According to the report, two companies are behind most of the dirty dealings currently going on: Dependable Locksmith of New York and Basad Inc. of Englewood, Colorado.

The BBB says these two outfits have connections in other cities around the country with advertisements in local phone directories as well as on the Internet.

They use fake addresses to make their ads seem more legitimate and even though local phone numbers are listed, calling those numbers may connect you to a call center in another part of the country where they can dispatch one of their local fake locksmiths to job locations.

Some of the tactics to watch out for which may indicate that you have encountered a fake locksmith include:

• The locksmith’s use of an unmarked vehicle instead of a vehicle with a company name or logo on it.
• Quoting you a price over the phone that goes up dramatically once the locksmith actually arrives to do the job.
• High pressure tactics to make you pay the higher fee.

Reports of encounters with these low-life involve people who are stuck in a bad situation by being locked out of their homes or automobiles and are easier to victimize due to their desperation to resolve the problem. Just the kind of situation these scumbags thrive on.

Try to familiarize yourself somewhat with the names of reputable local locksmiths so if you need their services some day, you will have some familiarity with them.

Try to avoid paying with cash or check and use a credit card since you will be protected better from fraud and if you don’t feel comfortable with a locksmith you have hired and suspect they might be trying to take advantage of you, tell them you do not to do business with them and call someone else.

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