Keys locked in the car? Let's get you back behind the wheel

We open the car or trunk where it sits

If your keys are inside, the car does not need a tow or a new key. Your locksmith comes to the vehicle and opens the door or trunk with entry tools and methods chosen to avoid damage, then you take your own keys back out.

If a child or pet is locked in the car, especially on a hot or very cold day, call 911 first. Lockouts with a child or pet inside get priority with us too, but emergency services come first.

It happens everywhere: a Meridian driveway, an apartment lot off Eagle Road, a park-and-ride along I-84, or an event lot by the Ford Idaho Center.

Worth checking before you call

• Pull on every door, the rear hatch and the trunk. A forgotten unlocked rear door is common.
• If your car has a maker's phone app or a connected service, it may be able to unlock the doors from your phone.
• If someone nearby has a spare and can bring it, that may be your simplest fix.
• On a push-to-start car, the doors often refuse to lock with the fob inside. A weak fob battery can fool that check, so don't count on it.

Leave the coat hanger and the slim strip from a video alone. Modern doors hide airbag wiring and lock rods that bend easily, and a broken window turns a lockout into a repair.

Trunk lockouts work a little differently

Keys in the trunk but the cabin still open? Look for a fold-down rear seat or a trunk release near the driver. Some releases only work when the car is unlocked or has battery power, which is why they sometimes seem dead.

If both the cabin and the trunk are locked, or the car battery has died and the power locks won't respond, say so on the call. The locksmith plans the route into the trunk at the car, often through the cabin first.

What to tell us on the phone

• Where the car is: a street address, a parking lot row or garage level, or the closest cross streets
• Year, make and model
• Where the keys are: on the seat, in the ignition, in the trunk, or you're not sure
• Whether the engine is still running or an alarm is sounding
• That you'll have photo ID plus the car's registration or title on hand

We confirm photo ID and proof the car is yours before opening it. If your wallet or registration is shut inside with the keys, bring that up at the start of the call.

When it isn't really a lockout

Sometimes the keys aren't inside the car at all. If they are gone, the job becomes making a new key; see all keys lost. If a key snapped off in the door, read broken car key. If the key goes into the ignition but won't turn, see ignition won't turn. If it's the door lock that won't turn on a cold Idaho morning, the cause can simply be ice; see frozen car lock.

Locked out of the house instead of the car? That is covered on our house lockout page. And if this is the second time this year, a spare car key kept at home turns the next lockout into a phone call to family.

Step by step

1. 1
   Call (208) 629-0482Tell us where the car is and where the keys are. Child or pet inside? Call 911 first.
2. 2
   The price, before the driveWe explain it on the phone before the locksmith heads to your car.
3. 3
   ID check, then entryWe confirm your ID and registration, then open the car or trunk with methods chosen to avoid damage.
4. 4
   Keys back in your handYou check that the car starts and the doors lock again before the locksmith leaves.