Payless Locksmith DC

I contacted Payless Locksmith because we were in a time-sensitive situation. My wife had broken a key off in the front door deadbolt, and when we left for an event, we secured the house by exiting through the rear door. Unfortunately, I later realized I locked the rear door handle and did not have a key for that lock. While at my daughter’s track meet, I scheduled the locksmith to meet us at our home. From the beginning, I clearly asked the dispatcher for an estimate for two things: removing the broken key from the front deadbolt and unlocking the rear door handle. I emphasized that I wanted pricing before service. No estimate was provided, and the locksmith was simply dispatched. When the locksmith arrived, I again asked for pricing. I was quoted $350 for the front door and $250 for the rear door. Since we only needed entry into the house, I chose the more affordable option and asked to proceed with the rear door only. At that point, the price suddenly changed from $250 to $450 for the same rear door service. That immediate price increase made me uncomfortable. It felt like the situation — including the fact that we were outside with our children and needed access — was being used as leverage. I declined the service. After I canceled, the locksmith then attempted to charge an $89 service fee, despite the pricing confusion and the lack of a clear estimate beforehand. The pricing continued to shift, which felt unprofessional and misleading. This experience felt extremely questionable. I expected transparent pricing and consistency, especially after clearly requesting an estimate multiple times. I would strongly encourage anyone considering Payless Locksmith to confirm written pricing before a technician is dispatched and before any work begins.

Called when I got locked out and will say they showed up quickly. However, they charged $499 just for using a metal bit on a drill to unlock my door in 30 seconds. Not a fancy lock picker or anything so they ended up breaking my lock. If I would've known, would have just rented the tools from the DC public library as they have those tools to rent for free.

I am the idiot that locked myself out of the apartment on Saturday night @ 9pm. But I do have to echo what others have said here. This is predatory and I'm still a little upset about it. The price changed multiple times. The original quote was over 600 dollars. I should have just gone and checked in to the Ritz for what I ended up paying. So yeah, it felt like a scam from the jump but he was quick and I did get in to my apartment in less than 30 minutes. Don't use this business. Taking advantage of people when they're at the worst is repugnant.