So You’ve Locked Your Keys In Your Car: What To Do?

So what will you do now? Assuming that you’ve decided not to risk hiding an extra set of keys somewhere on your car or have not had the foresight to have another set made to be kept in some safe location, you’re going to need to find a way to get those keys.

Here are a few things you can try to get in without a key:

If your vehicle has door locks that are recessed inside the interior door handle, the best solution for you is to just get help from a certified, licensed professional—there are plenty of certified locksmiths that can arrive at the scene almost immediately. Trying to force this open yourself will likely result in damaging the car door.

If your car has the kind of old-style door locks with little buttons on the window ledge, you can try to hook one using the hanger technique popular with thieves the world over. However, but most could be hard to manipulate. Straighten a wire coat hanger and bend the end into a little hook. Insert it between the rubber molding and the side window, and then attempt to carefully hook it around the door button and pull it up.

If you happen to lock yourself out of the vehicle while you have the trunk open, you will probably be able to move the rear seat out of the way and gain access to the rear of the car (alternately, you can hide an extra ignition key in the trunk that you could ).

Luckily, many newer vehicles come with “digital keys”, that is, electronic door openers that actually won’t allow you to lock the car doors with the keys in the vehicle. The downside is that if you do lose your electronic door opener, it could take days and hundreds of dollars to replace it, and you’ll likely need to have the vehicle towed to a dealer who will order a new key, causing you to incur further costs.

Locking your keys in your car is frustrating, but it doesn’t have to be the end of the world. The good news is that each car key is coded by the auto manufacturer, and if you have the key code number and personal identification, a locksmith can make you a new key in no time. What you should make sure you do in advance however is write down the key code number and leave it where someone at home can read it to you in an emergency.

Finding yourself in the above situation should not cause too much of a panic when you know who to ask help from. Call an emergency locksmith right away to avoid going through the stress of forcing your car to open.