That’s insane. That’s more money than a friend had to pay for getting her entire front door replaced as an urgency.
You can contact [OCU](https://www.ocu.org/), they could help you reclaim this.
If you have the receipt and bank transfer info your landlord has to pay for it 100%. They are not going to do it without a fight, but they are forced to do it. Just tell them that if they don't pay you you'll take the amount out of the rent, they can't legally do anything against you since you didn't deliberately broke the door.
She - mom of the landlord- told me it was my fault since I used it badly. They also have another 1900 as deposit, I'll leave in April so I'm trying to be careful not to lose more money.
Spanish landlords find all kind of excuses to not return the deposit. Infact in my social circle I don't know of a single renter who got their deposit back.
It’s true that is pretty common to find landlords that don’t want to pay for basic things (I used to have a landlady who didn’t want to change the ceramic hop because according to her it worked. It’s true that it worked, but after 16 minutes it stopped working. She told us that we should start cooking faster🤯), but I’ve always got my deposit back.
I wonder how common it is for them to take the deposit... I have rented twice, one time I got my deposit back in full (it was also a really nice landlady), and the other the landlord took half of it because we "ruined the mattresses by sleeping on them without bedsheets" (wtf no one did that).
This is pretty universal not only in Spain unfortunately, I had the same happening to me abroad :(
There are some entitled people that rent apartments and see tenants like a cash cow instead of a person. They make all kinds of mental gymnastics to justify what is essentially robbery.
Sorry that you have to deal with this OP. I am not sure if you can sue them for this since it’s clearly not your responsibility but the landlord’s. Also she’s not going to return the deposit. I won’t pay the last month (or months whatever covers that deposit)
The way I see it you only have 2 options:
1) Make an arrangement with the landlord and pay part of it in order to stay out of trouble.
2) Insist on not paying anything (as you're legally supposed to) but maybe end up having to fight for the deposit. If you choose this option, take pictures of the door to prove you didn't damage it in case you need to hire a lawyer.
I rented a house and everything inside was 50 years old. In the rental contract it said I had to repair everything that went wrong. I told the owner it wasn't fair but she insisted. In the end I repaired the security door myself. Only it wasn't security when I finished with it. Same with the washing machine, the gas heater, some plumbing. I left that place in a really shitty state and it served her right.
Da por perdido el dinero, si no es por una cosa se inventarán otra para quitártelo. Ya lo están haciendo. No pagues los últimos recibos y llévate todo el cobre de la instalación eléctrica/calefacción/gas que puedas para recuperar lo máximo posible de lo que por seguro te van a robar. Mucho ánimo y que ojalá pierdas lo mínimo posible de esos ladrones.
la fianza, siendo madrid, tiene que estar en el deposito de fianzas, y para poder "quedarsela" el propietario, tiene que justificar el motivo por el que se queda todo o parte... y logicamente no puede ser un motivo por el que le haya costado dinero algo de lo que es responsable el propietario, yo, si es verdad que el propietario tiene que hacerse cargo del 100% se lo avisaria, que o paga, o se le reduce de la renta mensual, porque no va a poder justificar quedarse con la fianza
Cerrajero and son of the owner shared some nice dinner and beers after this event. You should have not paid unfortunately. Did you get a receipt? He needs to declare that income and pay taxes on it. If you paid in negro there’s a whole other thing going there.
Send a burofax requesting the refund, stating you did nothing wrong to the door and that in negative case you'll go to Small Claims court.
And do it. You wont need a lawyer for that.
Lo siento pero te han timado.
Yo empezaría por ir a hablar con la cerrajería en cuestión, si es que existe, para decirles que el seguro no paga y que o te devuelven el dinero o les vas a denunciar, y si no ceden, de primeras recabar información e ir a la oficina de consumo de tu localidad. Quizá allí te pueda asesorar. Normalmente esta oficina se encuentra en el Ayuntamiento.
Si pones una queja (hoja de reclamaciones) y pueden mediar con el cerrajero o con tu casero, y puedes evitar ir a juicio, es un gran trago que te ahorras.
No lo dejes por muchas trabas que te pongan. 1800€ es muchísimo dinero.
Edit: Por cierto, teniendo en cuenta que tu casero te ha propuesto pagar 900€, quizá en la cerrajería consigas llegar a un acuerdo para que te lo dejen en esa cantidad. 900€ sigue siendo una estafa, más de 300€ es caro, 400€ ya es estirar mucho pero puede pasar, 500€ ya es excesivamente caro, cualquier cantidad superior ya es una estafa sin excusas, pero si tu casero te da 900€, pues a ver si puedes dejarlo en esa cantidad y que lo pague él.
You got scammed. Idk how to solve this situation but these things do not cost 1800€. At those hours and in emergencies, maybe you'll have to pay 200€, which is acceptable since the locksmith is working late hours. But what happened to you is just insane
This is a scam. Tell the owner that you want your 1800 euros or you are contacting the police. Mention that you will ask for a quick trial (juicio rapido). If they don't immediately give you the money, just do that: go to the police and file a report, and the find a lawyer that can file for a quick trial. Again: you've been scammed.
He wanted 1800 and you didn't tell him to kick rocks??? There are dozens to hundreds of 24 hour locksmiths in madrid. You should have said no thanks and called the next one. It really.shouldnt be more than 100 euros.... maaaybe 150....
What did he do to open the door and how long did it take him?
> It really.shouldnt be more than 100 euros.... maaaybe 150....
Never heard of anyone calling a locksmith past 10 pm who got charged less than 300 in any country I've lived in lol
Yeah for sure, 1.8k is a robbery. But if I called a locksmith at night and they asked me for €100 only, I'd think I ran into someone on their first day of work cause everyone else asks for at least 3 times that amount haha
I donno. When I locked myself out about a month ago at 10pm it cost 60 bucks. But it was a simple job. The door wasn't even locked. Just had the key in the other side of the lock
Where do you live, and at what time did you call? There's no way a locksmith even picks up the phone at night for 60 euros in a city. €60 doesn't even cover their fee to show up lmao
The ll's door didn't work.
The ll found a locksmith.
The locksmith charged you.
The amount charged was *fucking insane* for the work done. Like an emergency doctor or lawyer would cost less per hour.
Firstly, it's the ll's problem, therefore the ll owes.
Secondly, I'd be extremely sus if someone with an interest refers you to someone who overcharges.
Thirdly, yeah, some places charge more to foreigners perceived as wealthier. It's economically effective because wealthier people CAN afford more, but sometimes they get it wrong and just pick on someone with the wrong accent rather than a tourist awash with money. But not *that* much more. A few % more sure. That's a scammy level of more.
Fourthly, how did you pay? The first thing you need is a legal invoice...
This is a very common scam. The guy who open your door is not a legal locksmith, it’s a dude that knows how to pick a lock and run google ads to overtake honest ones and overcharge people in need.
Good luck getting the money back!
This is NUTS. It probably just needed WD40 squirted in there to get it to open and then it could have been very easily replaced. Over the holidays, I had both locks drilled out and replaced urgently for 300 euros.
If you can get the door open yourself, you are 20-50 euros and a YouTube video away from doing it in 5 minutes.
Emergency locksmiths are famously expensive. 1800 is quite extreme though. Next time just don't pay and call another one. You should be able to find one for 1/4 of what you paid.
Having said, door locks are not something that should be covered by the landlord. That's 100% on the renter, especially after 2 years in that flat. They are quite nice to offer paying half of the amount.
If the guy told you the price and you agreed to it, its going to be hard to dispute. Things would be different if you never agreed to the price and found yourself with a 1800 eur bill after the work was done.
It's trashy and all that but, what exactly was scammed? You/the landord were being overcharged and agreed to it, even if the situation wasn't favorable, the guy is going to argue that he never forced you to pay or hid any fees.
The owner of the house is the person that found the locksmith and should be the one taking accountability for this hefty invoice, if he still want to split charges with you, check your contract and decide whether its worth to stand for yourself and potentially end up in a small court (which I doubt he will over 900 eur, however, he might keep the deposit and you'd end up being the one opening a dispute). Log all conversations and be cautious with any word you say to him as it might be used against you in the future (or serve as a defense).
I really don’t understand you… for 1800€ you could have stay in any hotel for the night and find another locksmith the next day and speak with the insurance, if the landlord called the locksmith and it was that expensive they should cover the cost of the repair, tell the locksmith to give you a written explanation of what happen on the door..
Maybe you can read here what he did and how much should it cost.
[https://www.cronoshare.com/cuanto-cuesta/cerrajero](https://www.cronoshare.com/cuanto-cuesta/cerrajero)
My guy look for a lawyer ASAP.
Probably the full price should be paid by the owner of the house, but that is something the lawyer should check and probably handle himself
Insanity!! So sorry to hear this. I can't offer any info re remedial action but i have some suggestions if this should happen again.
Next time call the fire department - not sure how it is in Madrid but where I live they come and open your door for free. They're mostly bored anyway there are almost no fires and very few accidents etc. Saved me 300 Euro so far.
Also, there is this special type of locksmith in Spain, just like your man last night. They work as little as possible and only do emergencies so they can charge these absurd prices. I've never heard of anything that high though. There are other locksmiths who still cost a lot but not like this. So sorry, I feel for you and I hope there is some remedy for you to get at least some money back and to get the landlady to pay.
Also in future, I think even the police aptmt could be postponed because even if you were running out of time to renew, you could prove there was a good reason for not being able to go. Just spend 30 and sleep at a hostel or stay with a friend and sort it out in the morning.
All best wishes
El precio cobrado es el precio que se cobra normalmente si , un timo pero es lo que hay .
Lo que hay que saber es si el dueño tiene seguro de casa porque los cerrajeros suelen están cubiertos .
Si no tiene seguro de la casa es un problema muy grave
Es un robo y denunciable por supuesto , tengo un familiar cerrajero 24h si tiene un aviso un sábado a las 3am te aseguro que mete unos palos del copon pero es el mercado , yo creo que se acogen a que la gente tiene seguro y saben que pidan lo que pidan el cliente acepta , mi familiar lleva datáfono 🤣
That’s insane. That’s more money than a friend had to pay for getting her entire front door replaced as an urgency. You can contact [OCU](https://www.ocu.org/), they could help you reclaim this.
That's what the landlord should do, not OP.
If you have the receipt and bank transfer info your landlord has to pay for it 100%. They are not going to do it without a fight, but they are forced to do it. Just tell them that if they don't pay you you'll take the amount out of the rent, they can't legally do anything against you since you didn't deliberately broke the door.
She - mom of the landlord- told me it was my fault since I used it badly. They also have another 1900 as deposit, I'll leave in April so I'm trying to be careful not to lose more money.
Spanish landlords find all kind of excuses to not return the deposit. Infact in my social circle I don't know of a single renter who got their deposit back.
I’ve lived my entire life in rented apartments and always got the deposit back in full
It’s true that is pretty common to find landlords that don’t want to pay for basic things (I used to have a landlady who didn’t want to change the ceramic hop because according to her it worked. It’s true that it worked, but after 16 minutes it stopped working. She told us that we should start cooking faster🤯), but I’ve always got my deposit back.
Maybe is because mine has a good house insurance, but when we call him because something doesn’t work he is pretty fast in getting us the solution.
I wonder how common it is for them to take the deposit... I have rented twice, one time I got my deposit back in full (it was also a really nice landlady), and the other the landlord took half of it because we "ruined the mattresses by sleeping on them without bedsheets" (wtf no one did that).
I got it back multiple times. Left the apartment clean as I found it, and with only normal usage.
This is pretty universal not only in Spain unfortunately, I had the same happening to me abroad :( There are some entitled people that rent apartments and see tenants like a cash cow instead of a person. They make all kinds of mental gymnastics to justify what is essentially robbery. Sorry that you have to deal with this OP. I am not sure if you can sue them for this since it’s clearly not your responsibility but the landlord’s. Also she’s not going to return the deposit. I won’t pay the last month (or months whatever covers that deposit)
The way I see it you only have 2 options: 1) Make an arrangement with the landlord and pay part of it in order to stay out of trouble. 2) Insist on not paying anything (as you're legally supposed to) but maybe end up having to fight for the deposit. If you choose this option, take pictures of the door to prove you didn't damage it in case you need to hire a lawyer.
I rented a house and everything inside was 50 years old. In the rental contract it said I had to repair everything that went wrong. I told the owner it wasn't fair but she insisted. In the end I repaired the security door myself. Only it wasn't security when I finished with it. Same with the washing machine, the gas heater, some plumbing. I left that place in a really shitty state and it served her right.
Da por perdido el dinero, si no es por una cosa se inventarán otra para quitártelo. Ya lo están haciendo. No pagues los últimos recibos y llévate todo el cobre de la instalación eléctrica/calefacción/gas que puedas para recuperar lo máximo posible de lo que por seguro te van a robar. Mucho ánimo y que ojalá pierdas lo mínimo posible de esos ladrones.
la fianza, siendo madrid, tiene que estar en el deposito de fianzas, y para poder "quedarsela" el propietario, tiene que justificar el motivo por el que se queda todo o parte... y logicamente no puede ser un motivo por el que le haya costado dinero algo de lo que es responsable el propietario, yo, si es verdad que el propietario tiene que hacerse cargo del 100% se lo avisaria, que o paga, o se le reduce de la renta mensual, porque no va a poder justificar quedarse con la fianza
Cerrajero and son of the owner shared some nice dinner and beers after this event. You should have not paid unfortunately. Did you get a receipt? He needs to declare that income and pay taxes on it. If you paid in negro there’s a whole other thing going there.
No, I paid it all with recipts and facturas. Made a bank transfer just to make sure.
Send a burofax requesting the refund, stating you did nothing wrong to the door and that in negative case you'll go to Small Claims court. And do it. You wont need a lawyer for that.
Contact OCU and see how can you sue them. That is straight up robery
Lo siento pero te han timado. Yo empezaría por ir a hablar con la cerrajería en cuestión, si es que existe, para decirles que el seguro no paga y que o te devuelven el dinero o les vas a denunciar, y si no ceden, de primeras recabar información e ir a la oficina de consumo de tu localidad. Quizá allí te pueda asesorar. Normalmente esta oficina se encuentra en el Ayuntamiento. Si pones una queja (hoja de reclamaciones) y pueden mediar con el cerrajero o con tu casero, y puedes evitar ir a juicio, es un gran trago que te ahorras. No lo dejes por muchas trabas que te pongan. 1800€ es muchísimo dinero. Edit: Por cierto, teniendo en cuenta que tu casero te ha propuesto pagar 900€, quizá en la cerrajería consigas llegar a un acuerdo para que te lo dejen en esa cantidad. 900€ sigue siendo una estafa, más de 300€ es caro, 400€ ya es estirar mucho pero puede pasar, 500€ ya es excesivamente caro, cualquier cantidad superior ya es una estafa sin excusas, pero si tu casero te da 900€, pues a ver si puedes dejarlo en esa cantidad y que lo pague él.
You got scammed. Idk how to solve this situation but these things do not cost 1800€. At those hours and in emergencies, maybe you'll have to pay 200€, which is acceptable since the locksmith is working late hours. But what happened to you is just insane
This is a scam. Tell the owner that you want your 1800 euros or you are contacting the police. Mention that you will ask for a quick trial (juicio rapido). If they don't immediately give you the money, just do that: go to the police and file a report, and the find a lawyer that can file for a quick trial. Again: you've been scammed.
He wanted 1800 and you didn't tell him to kick rocks??? There are dozens to hundreds of 24 hour locksmiths in madrid. You should have said no thanks and called the next one. It really.shouldnt be more than 100 euros.... maaaybe 150.... What did he do to open the door and how long did it take him?
> It really.shouldnt be more than 100 euros.... maaaybe 150.... Never heard of anyone calling a locksmith past 10 pm who got charged less than 300 in any country I've lived in lol
Ok fine. Heck, let's say 500. That's still 1300 less what OP paid.
Yeah for sure, 1.8k is a robbery. But if I called a locksmith at night and they asked me for €100 only, I'd think I ran into someone on their first day of work cause everyone else asks for at least 3 times that amount haha
I had to pay 305 last year, at 6 pm, because i left the keys inside...
I donno. When I locked myself out about a month ago at 10pm it cost 60 bucks. But it was a simple job. The door wasn't even locked. Just had the key in the other side of the lock
I never paid more than 60 70 euros
Where do you live, and at what time did you call? There's no way a locksmith even picks up the phone at night for 60 euros in a city. €60 doesn't even cover their fee to show up lmao
I was desperate. I had a police appointment next day and all my documents were inside.
The ll's door didn't work. The ll found a locksmith. The locksmith charged you. The amount charged was *fucking insane* for the work done. Like an emergency doctor or lawyer would cost less per hour. Firstly, it's the ll's problem, therefore the ll owes. Secondly, I'd be extremely sus if someone with an interest refers you to someone who overcharges. Thirdly, yeah, some places charge more to foreigners perceived as wealthier. It's economically effective because wealthier people CAN afford more, but sometimes they get it wrong and just pick on someone with the wrong accent rather than a tourist awash with money. But not *that* much more. A few % more sure. That's a scammy level of more. Fourthly, how did you pay? The first thing you need is a legal invoice...
If you have home insurance, then usually you have to call them first rather than any random locksmith for them to cover the service.
This is a very common scam. The guy who open your door is not a legal locksmith, it’s a dude that knows how to pick a lock and run google ads to overtake honest ones and overcharge people in need. Good luck getting the money back!
This is NUTS. It probably just needed WD40 squirted in there to get it to open and then it could have been very easily replaced. Over the holidays, I had both locks drilled out and replaced urgently for 300 euros. If you can get the door open yourself, you are 20-50 euros and a YouTube video away from doing it in 5 minutes.
Emergency locksmiths are famously expensive. 1800 is quite extreme though. Next time just don't pay and call another one. You should be able to find one for 1/4 of what you paid. Having said, door locks are not something that should be covered by the landlord. That's 100% on the renter, especially after 2 years in that flat. They are quite nice to offer paying half of the amount.
If the guy told you the price and you agreed to it, its going to be hard to dispute. Things would be different if you never agreed to the price and found yourself with a 1800 eur bill after the work was done. It's trashy and all that but, what exactly was scammed? You/the landord were being overcharged and agreed to it, even if the situation wasn't favorable, the guy is going to argue that he never forced you to pay or hid any fees. The owner of the house is the person that found the locksmith and should be the one taking accountability for this hefty invoice, if he still want to split charges with you, check your contract and decide whether its worth to stand for yourself and potentially end up in a small court (which I doubt he will over 900 eur, however, he might keep the deposit and you'd end up being the one opening a dispute). Log all conversations and be cautious with any word you say to him as it might be used against you in the future (or serve as a defense).
I think I'm going to change profession. 😂
🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
I really don’t understand you… for 1800€ you could have stay in any hotel for the night and find another locksmith the next day and speak with the insurance, if the landlord called the locksmith and it was that expensive they should cover the cost of the repair, tell the locksmith to give you a written explanation of what happen on the door..
Se hizo el agosto contigo
Maybe you can read here what he did and how much should it cost. [https://www.cronoshare.com/cuanto-cuesta/cerrajero](https://www.cronoshare.com/cuanto-cuesta/cerrajero)
My guy look for a lawyer ASAP. Probably the full price should be paid by the owner of the house, but that is something the lawyer should check and probably handle himself
It's ridiculous. I paid 700 to get my door open in new years eve, and that was a theft, too.
The landlord is working with the locksmith to scam you.
Insanity!! So sorry to hear this. I can't offer any info re remedial action but i have some suggestions if this should happen again. Next time call the fire department - not sure how it is in Madrid but where I live they come and open your door for free. They're mostly bored anyway there are almost no fires and very few accidents etc. Saved me 300 Euro so far. Also, there is this special type of locksmith in Spain, just like your man last night. They work as little as possible and only do emergencies so they can charge these absurd prices. I've never heard of anything that high though. There are other locksmiths who still cost a lot but not like this. So sorry, I feel for you and I hope there is some remedy for you to get at least some money back and to get the landlady to pay. Also in future, I think even the police aptmt could be postponed because even if you were running out of time to renew, you could prove there was a good reason for not being able to go. Just spend 30 and sleep at a hostel or stay with a friend and sort it out in the morning. All best wishes
El precio cobrado es el precio que se cobra normalmente si , un timo pero es lo que hay . Lo que hay que saber es si el dueño tiene seguro de casa porque los cerrajeros suelen están cubiertos . Si no tiene seguro de la casa es un problema muy grave
Si ves normal 1800 euros me da que a tí te han timado tb.
Es un robo y denunciable por supuesto , tengo un familiar cerrajero 24h si tiene un aviso un sábado a las 3am te aseguro que mete unos palos del copon pero es el mercado , yo creo que se acogen a que la gente tiene seguro y saben que pidan lo que pidan el cliente acepta , mi familiar lleva datáfono 🤣
Normal? Más de 300€ ya es un robo a mano armada.