I locked my keys inside my house today (Sunday) and I had to call the locksmith. Well, when they arrived they told me it was going to be 350 euros to open the door… I had been locked out already for 2 hours so I foolishly agreed and they destroyed the door to open it. Then they quoted me 2000 euros to put a new lock on it. Is this reasonable?? I turned them down for the new door - I am just sitting with a semi-open door that I cannot close or it will be permanently closed - and I paid the 350 to get them to go away. Please help, what can I do in this situation? I live in Palaiseau in Ile-de-France.
Edit: it was Darius Assistance in Paris, DO NOT USE THEM!
No I didn’t, I guess this should have been the first move… The first thing I did was try to call my landlord but she didn’t answer. We have a card in the lobby of our building which has numbers for a bunch of urgent services like plumber, locksmith, etc and I called the locksmith listed there. I’ve never locked myself out of anything in France.
Where did they tie up their horse?
Yes royally rogered. 2k for a new lock yeh right.
A proper locksmith will open the lock non destructively in almost all cases. You should report this twit to the chamber de metiers.
I’ve just spoken with the landlord, she insisted that I call my insurance. The insurance is telling me that because I am now inside the house, nothing is covered and they basically tell me to f*ck off. They say they only cover interventions if you are blocked from the exterior but because I called a serrurier on my own and they opened the door, there is nothing they can do it and it will all be on my “charge”. I can’t believe this, am I really as screwed as they say???
Yes sounds like it, when I got called by insurance companies it was to keep costs down as I never charged anything like that and hardly ever destroyed a lock (had to sometimes as it was quicker than picking)
I’ve decided to wait until tomorrow to call more locksmiths and see if anyone will replace the lock for cheaper. Here is what it looks like in my apartment right now - surely 2000 euros is too much to replace this right?
Was this a card and number put there by the landlord? If so I think they will have some duty to intervene on your behalf, if you were only following their advice. They will not want to queer their relationship with the landlord.
Many years ago my wife locked herself in the flat and left the key in the lock. The only way to get in was to smash through the double glazed panel with a pickaxe, took some doing too. I asked the locksmith to change the lock to one which could be unlocked from the outside even with an inside key in the lock and was told that no such thing existed. I phoned another company who came straight round and fitted exactly the lock I wanted. Not all locksmiths are the same. I do hope you find a good one, as I eventually did.
The lock is still in place they just removed the cylinder and thats just a euro cylinder so unless is a high security part of the buildings landlord set it wont cost 200 let alone 2000.
It happened to me twice. As my insurance covers all glass breakages, I smashed a panel on a discreet window, and got in that way.
Prior to that I lived in the city, and had no other access other than the door. A locksmith on the street came over and forced a thin piece of material into the gap, jiggled it around a lot, and eventually got in, which was a relief and a bit scary just how easy it was to do. Still cost around 100 euros and that was more than a decade ago.
Those cards aren’t official (but to the untrained eye they do look like it) they are put up or wedged in community letter boxes, information panels etc. by fly by nights rogues.
In the meantime take the measurements / thickness of the door and go to your local brico store first thing tomorrow and find a new simple lock, install it for the time being.
Pm me if you want me to contact a company that worked for me for many years and installed thousands of doors and locks.
Just read your last post
You can buy the locks from your local brico store all you need is a screw driver to fit the new lock. If you can’t do it yourself see my last post.
@tonysf
Just replied to your PM with my name and tel number
Also a link to the companies website
I’d like to know a bit more about the door and barrel size. Better if I ring the company beforehand the job may workout cheaper and the délais shorter.
The company is reputable and just down the road from you.
It’s a 3 point locking door, does this change things? The professionals my French-native friend talked to quoted me 1400 and said the entire 3 point lock had to be replaced
It shouldnt require the 3 point lock to be replaced, all the butchers had to do is open the euro cylinder, several ways besides picking with zero damage to the lock or surround. If the butchers have damaged the lock so it needs replacing its time to go after them for damages!
A replacement 3 point lock still doesnt cost 1400 and is just a matter of screws. The Verso system made in Germany are not more than 250, add journey and time say 500-600 max youll still need a cylinder of course.
if it’s just a cylinder, does this mean I can go to leroy merlin, buy a cylinder, and throw it in the door myself? I have a screwdriver and pliers but no drill.
Yes to the screw driver, no drill required, you just need to measure the length of the lock you need, careful as not all locks are in the centre of the door so you might have a 30 one sise and 40mm the other, the measurement taken from the centre of the lock or the screw hole that holds the cylinder. Quite straight forward normally.
