A phone-directory search of locksmiths yielded a company that quoted a $35 service charge plus a fee of $15 that could go up if her vehicle "is a newer car which could be harder to open."

When the locksmith arrived in an unmarked truck, he said the job would cost $134.

"I told him I'd rather throw a rock through my window," said Scott, who eventually accepted a "discounted" price of $85.

The Colorado Better Business Bureau said Scott may have been a victim of a locksmith swindle becoming prevalent in Colorado. Companies register under an assortment of business names, flood phone directories with large ads and provide shoddy work at high prices.

Basad Inc., an Englewood locksmith, faces such allegations from the Colorado attorney general's office, which says the firm violated the Colorado Consumer Protection Act.