As a cylinder and key specialist I will put it as plainly as I can: anyone who will not name a price range before the job has something to hide. A quote on the phone is not a luxury. It is your strongest protection against the nasty surprise on the invoice. Insist on it, every time, at night too, even when you are standing in front of your own door and freezing.
I have worked on cylinders and locks for nine years, and I have seen enough invoices from colleagues to turn my stomach. 890 euros for a slammed door in Nordend. 1,200 euros because a special tool was supposedly needed. In both cases there was no price on the phone beforehand. That is no coincidence. That is the method.
Why a range, not a fixed price to the cent
Nobody can see down the phone line whether your door is merely slammed or deadbolted, whether the cylinder holds or snaps when it is pulled. That is why I never demand a cent-exact fixed price from you, but an honest range. "80 to 150 euros during the day, if the cylinder has to come out, 40 to 90 euros on top", that is a good quote. A figure like "from 49 euros" with no upper limit, by contrast, is a bait offer, nothing more.
The trick with the "from" price works reliably, unfortunately. 49 euros sounds harmless, so you agree. On site it then becomes the call-out, the surcharge, the "safety drilling", the material, and suddenly there are 600 euros on the slip. A range with a clear upper limit shuts down exactly this game. Ask for the upper limit. Always.
What a serious range must include
- The call-out, or at least a clear statement of whether it costs extra
- The actual labour, that is the opening
- Material, if a cylinder or lock is replaced
- The surcharge, if it is night, weekend or holiday
If one of these points is missing from the answer, the range is worthless. "150 euros" sounds fair, but if 90 euros call-out and 80 euros surcharge then land on top, it was never a real quote, only half of one.
The moment you agree, a contract exists
Many people do not know this, and that is exactly what gets exploited. The moment you say "yes, go ahead" on the phone, a verbal contract is concluded. If many times that is suddenly demanded on site, you have something to hold the firm to. Ideally in writing, by text or email. At least a clear statement on the phone that you remember later.
Without a quote it is your word against theirs. And in distress, with the cold at your neck and the children behind the locked door, the customer always comes off worse. That is why every fair door opening starts with a price range, the way we handle every door opening. No range, no job.
A practical tip from the workshop: have the range sent to you by text before anyone sets off. "Just send me that in writing quickly" separates the serious from the rip-offs in ten seconds. The honest firm types it out for you. The dodgy one gets evasive.
Does this work in an emergency too?
Yes. Even at three in the morning a serious firm can name a range. The single question "slammed or deadbolted" already settles most of it. A slammed door, that is one that has only fallen shut, not deadbolted, is open in ninety percent of cases in five minutes without any damage. A deadbolted door is more work, but there is a range for that too.
Anyone claiming a price simply cannot be given in an emergency says so only because they want to bill flexibly. Full stop. The emergency is no blank cheque, it is exactly the moment when the dodgy firm earns the most. What surcharges may genuinely be added at night is in our guide on night and weekend rates. A fair rule of thumb: a surcharge of fifty to a hundred percent on the daytime price is defensible at night. So 120 euros becomes maybe 200 euros. Not 800.
Locked out and in a hurry?
Price quoted up front, vetted partner business, ~22 minutes on site.
A typical price range you can orient yourself by
| Job | Daytime | Night/weekend |
|---|---|---|
| Open a slammed door | 80 to 150 euros | 150 to 250 euros |
| Open a deadbolted door | 120 to 220 euros | 200 to 350 euros |
| Replace a standard cylinder | 60 to 120 euros plus material | more with surcharge |
| Security cylinder (ABUS, Winkhaus) | 120 to 250 euros with material | more with surcharge |
| Extract a broken key | 90 to 160 euros | more with surcharge |
These are Frankfurt market values, not invented figures. If an offer is far below this, caution is warranted, because it gets corrected upward on site. If it is far above, ask why. An honest firm explains every line item.
An appointment in Westend
Last month a customer in Westend, a key snapped off in the cylinder, no emergency, she was inside after all. On the phone we made everything clear: pull the cylinder, remove the key remnant, fit a new Winkhaus security cylinder with a security card, all together 140 to 190 euros during the day. On site it came to 165 euros, exactly within the range. She had called two others beforehand who would not name a figure. Those are exactly the ones I would not have let in either.
And a story that went the other way. Last week an elderly gentleman in Bockenheim called me at night, completely distraught. A colleague had charged him 740 euros the day before for a simple slammed apartment door. No price beforehand, cash payment, no company name on the receipt, just a mobile number. Drill set to the door, even though it was only slammed, that is not deadbolted at all. Three classic warning signs at once. All I could tell him was that he can challenge such an invoice, because with no prior price agreement and obvious overcharging he has good cards. Had he asked for a range beforehand, that man would never have got into the house.
How to ask the right way
- "Can you give me a price range for exactly this case?"
- "Is the call-out included or added on top?"
- "Does that include material and surcharge?"
- "Will I get an invoice on site with a company name and address?"
- "Can you send me the range quickly by text?"
Five questions any honest firm answers in a minute. Whoever dodges, hedges or pressures you is the wrong one. More on how to spot a dodgy firm instantly is in the guide on recognising rip-offs.
The red flags on the phone
- No price, only "we will see that on site"
- A free 0800 number with no local connection
- Cash only, no invoice
- "Drilling is always necessary" for a slammed door
- Pressure: "I only have time now, decide right away"
Each single one of these flags is enough to hang up. The consumer advice centre has warned for years about exactly this pattern, and the picture matches what I see week after week at Frankfurt doors. More on that at the consumer advice centre.
What to do if you have already been ripped off
First, do not pay in a panic what cannot be demanded. If three times the agreed price suddenly stands on the slip on site, pay under protest and write that on the receipt. Second, get a proper invoice with company name, address and tax number. Whoever does not issue one almost always has something to hide. Third, you do not have to accept an immorally inflated demand, and when in doubt a brief legal consultation helps.
The simplest thing, of course, is not to end up in this situation in the first place. Save the number of a firm that gives you a price in advance into your phone now, before you need it. The fair ranges for the most common jobs are on our pricing page, and in a real emergency you can reach us around the clock via the emergency service with a price on the phone. No price in advance, no job. It is that simple.
