Think I "snapped" just a little today on a deadbeat.

[machinist]

crappy day, starting with a 92 Honda civic, took the job and missed making a key for a toyota 4runner, oh well part of job cant get to every car. Quote the douche 95$ for the first key 10$ every additional "okay sure! see you in 45 minutes" I get there 5 minutes early find out its a gated apt complex call him up to let my truck in, hmmm no answer oh well 2 mins later here comes a car gonna sneak in right after the gate opens for him. Okay heres the 92 civc right inside the gate, oh wow no front bumper obvious suspension damage stolen radio dents, rust and where there are none is flat black primer a classy ride indeed but w/e we all got to get to work. Call him again, he answers this time, hes not home and for some reason he tells me hes at his insurance office? trying to get the money for my services...? and he doesn't have anywhere near the 95$...? hum wtf? At this point I tell him theres a 29$ service call fee for coming out I get a nice run around about how he has no idea when hes gonna be home obviously bullshitting me zero intent to pay me for anything, I tell him hes morally if not legally obligated to pay me he tells me hes going to school to be an attorney and some nice bull he keeps mispronouncing words and using a lot of grammatically incorrect phrases for a law student blah blah blah not gonna pay you.

So I leave a nice note on his car:
"I looked at your car I realized you cant afford to pay $29. p.s. Sue your school for failing to teach you proper contract law and English."

http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=x3et7s&s=5

[MBI]

Umm... wow. Some people.

[rzr800]

That's why I dont like taking vehicles older than 95. Older they get the more likely something is sketchy and its always in a trailer park or somewhere in the bad side of town. I had a 06 Chevy once and the girl let her friend drive her home the night before and she was drunk and she lost the keys. Next morning she calls me up I go over to (the ghetto) and make the key and when I got finished she disappeared and her dad came out and told me that she passed out cause she was hungover and she will call me when she wakes up. Well I said ok I'll keep the keys since her old ones were erased from the system I wasn't worried. Next morning no call. I drive by that night car was gone. I hate ghetto people. I'm sure they found the keys and figured out how to reprogram them...

[keymaster1053]

I think I would have added just a little bit of crazy glue to each door lock as I left.

[machinist]

I think I would have added just a little bit of crazy glue to each door lock as I left.

I'm out that way quite a bit karma might come looking for him ignitions on older hondas go bad all the time and that can get pricey, hopefully his insurance will cover it.

[huxleypig]

Well it's nice to know the tossers of this world aren't limited to the UK!

I feel for you mate, what a waste of time and effort. I've had 2 of them recently, the one still owes me $800.

Yeah man, superglue in the locks! But that would definitely be classed as illegal.

[rai]

I once worked for a cab company, the city had three companies, in competition for what business there was.
some people were not business. they were deadbeat jerks,
the dispatchers would share this information with the other companies,

perhaps locksmiths should have an internet site so customers like this one could be listed. that way, he can call another company and they can ask him to bring the car to the shop and show the cash before work would begin.

[mdc5150]

I once worked for a cab company, the city had three companies, in competition for what business there was.
some people were not business. they were deadbeat jerks,
the dispatchers would share this information with the other companies,

perhaps locksmiths should have an internet site so customers like this one could be listed. that way, he can call another company and they can ask him to bring the car to the shop and show the cash before work would begin.

That would be nice, but there are so many deadbeat "locksmiths" around they would never bother with something like that and still go cut throat on all of their dealings. The thing I love most about the company I work for is we are strictly commercial. Our customers are established businesses so the risk is much lower. We still see deadbeats but not nearly as much. I did have a customer try to not pay me once after I put her laundromat on a Garrison system. She figured out really quick that without the keys and her old locks it was going to cost her one way or another so she made a quick trip to the bank for some cash. This after I came out at 4 in the morning when she said it was an emergency. She had two locks that another "locksmith" said needed to be drilled out. He was going to charge her $400 to do this service. I got there and he was still there trying to get money out of her. They were only tubular locks and I had them open before he could figure out she was not going to pay him. If I'd known how she was going to act with me I would have let him have at her alone.

[Violaetor]

This is why the world is going towards payments first and signed contracts, thankfully this usually protects both parties, but still headaches and hassles to get paid/work done as promised.

[magician59]

crappy day, starting with a 92 Honda civic, took the job and missed making a key for a toyota 4runner, oh well part of job cant get to every car. Quote the douche 95$ for the first key 10$ every additional "okay sure! see you in 45 minutes" I get there 5 minutes early find out its a gated apt complex call him up to let my truck in, hmmm no answer oh well 2 mins later here comes a car gonna sneak in right after the gate opens for him. Okay heres the 92 civc right inside the gate, oh wow no front bumper obvious suspension damage stolen radio dents, rust and where there are none is flat black primer a classy ride indeed but w/e we all got to get to work. Call him again, he answers this time, hes not home and for some reason he tells me hes at his insurance office? trying to get the money for my services...? and he doesn't have anywhere near the 95$...? hum wtf? At this point I tell him theres a 29$ service call fee for coming out I get a nice run around about how he has no idea when hes gonna be home obviously bullshitting me zero intent to pay me for anything, I tell him hes morally if not legally obligated to pay me he tells me hes going to school to be an attorney and some nice bull he keeps mispronouncing words and using a lot of grammatically incorrect phrases for a law student blah blah blah not gonna pay you.

So I leave a nice note on his car:
"I looked at your car I realized you cant afford to pay $29. p.s. Sue your school for failing to teach you proper contract law and English."

http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=x3et7s&s=5

One of my favorite screwdrivers is a Klein "11-N-1", where one of the bits is a schraeder valve removal tool...
"Hmmm...All those tires loked flat when I arrived, sir!"

[xeo]

I treat everything like eBay. Buyer pays first or nothing ships.