Complete Lock & Door

Similar to the experience of previous reviewers here, we provided Tim with a deposit and then - low and behold - he took our money and provided ABSOLUTELY ZERO SERVICE. No response despite many, many attempts to contact him. I have dealt with many people over the years and this level of unprofessionalism is unheard of. It's a shame to have people like Tim out there. I warn ALL potential customers to choose another company for work on your locks and doors!!

Thanks so much Complete Door and Lock.
The new door and locks help my family feel fully secure and safe.
We highly recommend Complete Door and Lock to everyone that needs great service and products.
The entire job was performed efficiently and with amazing quality and affordable.
Again Thanks to all at Comolete Door and Lock.

Just had my locks replaced by Tim. Called him up, explained what I needed and Tim delivered on time and on budget. He not only replaced the locks very efficiently, he corrected age old problems with both doors. It is very clear he has been doing this for a long time and takes pride in the work he does.

Whenever I find good trades people I immediately put them in my contacts. Tim’s contact info went in right after he left my home. I would recommend him in a heartbeat.

Dale Moser

I am here to confirm the warnings of previous posters on Homestars and Yelp about Tim and his company Complete Lock & Door, in Toronto.

Summary: Tim, owner and operator of Complete Lock and Door, has failed to do the work as agreed to, and repeatedly failed to return the refund of XXXX.XX that we paid him, after his own offer of refund. See below for details:

DETAILS (scroll down to "THE BOTTOM LINE" if you want to skip the finer points):
We contacted Tim in April 2018 to discuss the purchase+installation of a Baldwin lock and handle into our custom wood door, which at that time had not yet been completed or delivered. Tim replied in a timely manner and visited our house shortly thereafter, which was under construction at the time. Very kind and polite, yet confident in his expertise in the field, he discussed with us different options and confirmed that our initial choice of lock and handle set - which we had originally contacted him about - would provide the ultimate in security protection as far as the front door was concerned. Satisfied with his quote, we paid Tim a deposit of XXXX.XX (again, in April 2018) to secure his services; the Baldwin unit would be purchased by Tim, and then installed at a later date to be determined, after installation of our door was complete as part of a home renovation, at which point the remaining balance would be paid.

We had issues with the actual door (nothing to do with Tim and his Co.) which delayed us getting in touch with him for the installation. We exchanged text messages in October, November and December of 2018, all of a pleasant nature, regularly updating him with progress reports on the door; he would always sign off with words to the effect of, "No problem, let me know when the door is in so I can come do the installation."

Won't Meet Phone Call Appointments:
We informed him, by text message, on January 7 2019 that the door had been installed and that we'd like to arrange a time to install. It's this that started a journey-to-nowhere that has lasted til the time of writing (July 30 2019).

In that first month (week?) alone, from January 7 2019, Tim failed to make the following phone calls which he had promised to, via text:
- January 8, 11am-12pm
- January 9, 11am-12pm
- January 10, 12pm-1pm
- February 11 (unspecified time; "I'll call you shortly" was his text at 5:42pm that day)
- February 12, 11am-12pm

My wife made time for each and every one of these calls, only to get texts in the evening apologizing and asking for whatever date+time he offered next next.

Work Cancellations:
For actual installation dates, he cancelled twice:
1) March 21, with 1h20m notice (WE text him beforehand to confirm), citing both death in the family on March 1 AND cold weather (which one is it, man?)

2) April 4; he cancelled on April 3, text message saying "to [sic] cold and windy", asking to reschedule for the following Thursday, April 11. In a subsequent phone call, he mentioned, "in case there's a blizzard or vicious cold tomorrow." We reminded him that this was the purpose of the general weather forecast, and that the forecast for April 4 called for partly sunny skies and a high of +9C.

The Offer:
It was actually March 21 that set the stage for the real interesting part of the story. His text message to inform us that he would not be able to do the install included the key line: If you find that [reschedule to April 4] unacceptable I will return your deposit with interest." At this point, I was completely done with him - all the unreturned calls, unreturned texts....this nonsense had gone too far, and I wanted my money back. My wife however, sees the good in people and wanted to give him one more chance, so we decided to go ahead with April 4. Knowing his screw up, he offered to do install and waive the remaining balance, as he had wasted an entire day for my wife on March 21 (at the time, we were not living on site and she had commuted to get there for Tim's arrival).

Tim and I had two phone conversations following his cancellation on April 3. During call #1, I demanded the refund that Tim offered on March 21. He told me that he could't do that, citing a "2 week reconsideration period," after which he said, "think about it," and hung up on me without letting me answer. During a follow-up call that evening (can't believe he picked up the phone), he again brought up this 2 week reconsideration period, which, he reminded me, that I "had agreed to" earlier that afternoon (no Sir, I absolutely did not agree to that), explaining that he gives customers 2 weeks to reconsider a demand for a refund, with the majority of those customers coming back to him. I told him, "You offered this refund 2 weeks ago. I've already had my reconsideration period. I was done with you but my wife was being too nice. We want our money now, thank you." By the way, Tim (I know you're reading this!) - this "2 week" garbage makes you look real bad: either you were being untruthful to us, or you were giving away the fact that many of your customers are unhappy with you. Next time, try coming up with something that doesn't put you in a lose-lose situation!

The Refund (or lack thereof):
At the end of our phone call on April 3, Tim relented and said he'd return the money "at your door, in cash". Unfortunately, he went completely radio silent after this call . We called, we texted. No answers. Finally, a line of communication was opened on May 6 where he promised the return of our refund plus interest.

Tim himself can confirm that the following SEVEN promised dates to return the money, all of which have come and gone UNFULFILLED:

1) May 6: promises for May 24

2) May 22: Can't do May 24. Promises on following week, "until [pay] cheques arrive".

3) May 27: "no [pay] cheques in the mail; have no money to pay you." Promises to update me everyday.

4) Don't hear back from Tim until June 4. Promises to have it by end of following week, June 14.

5) June 13, texts saying June 14 not possible; his XXXXX who had a stroke. I reply with disapproval. Tim calls back, yelling at me that he is "pissed off" (repeated several times) that I am lecturing him, and that I will have the money "next week". Man, what a way to ruin my enjoyment of the Toronto Raptors' Finals Game 6 where they won the Championship! Anyways, of course, payment does not happen. Subsequent texts on July 3 and July 9 go unanswered. I call him on July 14; he answers, says he'll call back next day.

6) July 15, promises to have money delivered by July 23. Reminder sent July 19.

7) July 23: Cannot do it. Will take care of it on Thursday (July 25). Today, July 30 - Nothing.

THE BOTTOM LINE:
Tim was fast to reply to us to get the initial meeting and to nail down the deposit. He actually seemed like a real nice guy! When it came time to do the actual work, he was extremely hard to get a hold of. I have given a log of missed calls that he promised to take (see above), but this does not include the many unanswered phone calls and text messages.

When I did manage to get Tim on a call, I have been, among other things: hung-up on, yelled at (oh man, June 13 was pure gold!!), cussed at with F-bombs and being called an a-hole (followed, ironically, by being told to "relax") and told that he "won't accept negativity" when I calmly asked him on July 15 why I should believe he will deliver the money as he had promised to six previous times, all to no avail.

Tim has failed to come to do the job. Through his rambling, incoherent texts, I have heard excuse after excuse after excuse (sometimes within the same text - see above in details!). In these excuses, he has mentioned health issues. He has mentioned just about every relative possible: wife, mother-in-law, brother, sister, his four children, his grandchildren. He blames other customers for not paying on time (Tim, how about the paycheque you received from Alex K, who wrote you a nice review on Yelp on July 18 2019 for a job that you actually showed up for??). He blames the cold in April, even though we were trying to secure a date with him from January-March. He will butter you up with sweet nothings about "you are good people," "karma will return the favour." Absolutely, yes we are good people, Tim. We have tolerated your [read all of the above] for half a year!

Tim has taken our money. He has FAILED TO RETURN that money after SEVEN promised dates of refund. In desperation, I even told him that we'd be willing to waive the interest. We just wanted, at the very least, a return of our capital.

A message to Tim: I too have had direct relatives die. We all have. I have had health concerns too, which I have gone into surgery for. I also have had people not pay me on time (looking right at YOU, my man). Through that all, Sir, I have never, EVER, failed to pay my bills.

Based on other accounts on Homestars and Yelp, it seems that Tim has established a disturbing pattern behaviour which involves taking (a) customer's money, not starting/completing the job and not returning the money. This simply CANNOT be ignored. This man has *Red Flags* written all over him.

Having been one of his latest victims, I can only stress the following warning - if you are considering hiring Tim and his company Complete Lock and Door, tread very, very, carefully.

Pre-paid for work to be done in a office building and Tim never completed the job. He promised to pay the money back but guess what, he ran away and never returned. Class act ladies and gentlemen.

Tim put on a new door on the back of my house, I didn't want the top of the line, just a medium heavy duty deadbolt so he put on and amazing deadbolt with a 5 year warranty. it had the special feature that it couldn't picked or "bumped". He did it on time and and was very tidy and nice. You can clearly tell he's been doing this for a long time. He was able to explain in lamest terms what I was getting for the price I was paying. His estimate was free and I called around and his price was the best not to mention that he price matches as well.

Very happy and he'll be my locksmith for life.

When I called Complete Locks to provide us with a quote for a security upgrade Tim, the owner, came within the hour. However, the installation on Dec 13 was improperly done and he has missed 4 appointments over the last month to complete the installation (the week after, then 3 jan, 9th Jan, 13th jan). The excuses are many and varied: bad weather, another job, a supplier delay, car problems etc. etc. The last broken promise was to call or text on 19 Jan, more than 5 weeks after the original quote had said ““Complete in full on Dec 13.”

Specifically, I was charged $3,600 to install 3 security lights, change the locks, install bars on the basement windows, and install grills on the back door. Only the basement bars were correctly installed. On the day of the installation Tim arrived late, at 12, and then immediately left to meet a supplier. He left a colleague to start the work. However, I was charged nearly $2000 in labor including taxes (16 hours at $80/hr). As he left just after 6, he said he lived close by and promised to return the following week but he hasn’t dropped by once to address any of the problems inside or outside the house. Here are the problems:

— the lights do not work. Even when the company tested them they activated whenever someone walked or drove past the house. They knew this problem at the time, and by leaving in a hurry—the police urgently needed their assistance they told me—avoided addressing it before they were paid in full. They then shut the lights down to recharge. In fact, the lights I was charged $160+tax for are actually very cheap ones, if my google search is correct. Crucially, they don’t have a sensitivity indicator nor a way to direct the sensor and for that reason are not recommended when facing a road because the batteries drain very quickly.

— The back bars do not cover the whole window. The company promised to replace them, but has not.

— The front lock combines a stainless steel door mechanism and a bronze inset in the door. It doesn’t match. I was promised that this would be rectified, but it has not.

I could go on and on about broken promises, but I have already wasted a lot of time phoning, texting, and rejigging my schedule only to find that the company lets me down. The bottom line is that once the firm took my money it has not returned once to address the ongoing problems.

Tim, the owner operator of this company, has been the most unprofessional tradesperson I’ve worked with. When he arrived to change the locks on 3 doors at my business, things seemed fine, and he even complemented me on how easy I was to work with. He cited he was missing some parts, and would have to return to finish the job another day.

In the weeks that followed, Tim failed to show up for 4 scheduled appointments to finish the job. When I commented via text that he had missed 4 appointments, he showed up at my business and berated me in front of my customers.


It ended up taking 4 visits (he was late on all four visits) to change 3 locks and 3 door closures. + the four visits he scheduled and didn’t show up.

After one month, one of the door closures ended up pulling my door frame apart. Since he said his work was guaranteed, I called to schedule a repair. He did not show up for the appointment. Instead he sent a lengthy text full of excuses the next day. Then he showed up unannounced and asked my husband for his phone number because “guys talk straight”. In the end, I never received a proper invoice and my door is still broken. He no-showed a total of 5 times, arrived late the 4 times he did show up, was sexist, and spewed so many excuses. I would rather hire and pay a new locksmith to fix Tims poor job than to deal with Tim again. What a frustrating experience.

My wife and I went on vacation and, embarrassingly, forgot to leave a key for the catsitter in the lockbox. When she called to say that she couldn't get in, we called Complete Lock and Door. We found them through Google, and honestly, Tim saved our vacation. He was exceptionally courteous, extremely prompt, and very competent. He asked us to take a photo of our key and send it to him. He then confirmed his right to enter the apartment after asking us questions about the apartment that only we would know. From the photo we sent him, he then made a key with a file and a key blank on a maximum security deadbolt. As it turns out, we have a pretty good steel door and lock. His crafted key worked well, and he even pet our cat when he came to greet him at the door. On top of everything else, he leveled our door a bit (for free!) and made it easier to lock and unlock.

We were extremely happy with Tim. He really went above and beyond to help us, and he literally saved our vacation. No offense to Tim, but I hope to never have to use his services again (the cat sitter has her own key now), but if we do, or if anyone I know needs a locksmith, I will unhesitatingly and happily recommend Complete Lock and Door. Tim was fantastic, and if you need lock help, you will be happy with him.

As a long-time property manager, I've dealt with more contractors than I could ever count. Tim Miller may well be the most courteous and pleasant. His more than 30 years experience was a bonus. He and his son Matt replaced two locks, repaired two and included a trip to the hardware store. -- made 3 trips to my house -- to accommodate my preference for pewter and to save me the expense of a new handle on my screen door. It's been a while since I've enjoyed this level of service.