What Automotive Locksmiths Ask When You Call Them

When people type in “locksmith near me” to find someone to make a car key, they might be surprised to find that the locksmith will ask them several questions. Many customers assume the locksmith will just say yes and then show up. In this article, we will explain some of the questions locksmiths ask and why.

Do you have any working keys?

This is probably the first and most important thing a locksmith will ask when they call you. There are several reasons why they ask this question. One, it clues the locksmith into what level of skill the job might require. The company many have a person on staff that normally only does commercial locksmithing for businesses but in a pinch can unlock a car with a set of specialized tools. The other piece of information they are hoping to learn is how long will the job take. It’s easier and takes less time to duplicate an existing key then it is to decode and cut a new key. Additionally, when all the keys are lost to a car it might require specialized procedures or software to create new keys.

What is the Year, Make, and Model?

This is the second most important question they will ask. Not all locksmiths that make car keys are going to be able to make keys for every year, make, and model. For example, making keys to an Audi is much more difficult than a Honda, Ford, and Chevy. Occasionally, newer models will require specialized keys that are expensive and the company might not have them in stock. Depending on the vehicle, the remote might have specialized functions like remote start, hatch opening, or tail lift. Typically, most companies can provide some type of remote that will provide the basic functions to the car such as lock, unlock, and panic but might not have the more advanced features.

Does the same key work on the door and the ignition?

This question often confuses and surprises people. Most people wouldn’t imagine a scenario where the key wouldn’t match for the door and the ignition. In cases of repossession and attempted theft, the locks on the car might get damaged. Afterwords, the locks might need to be replaced and the person replacing them might not key the door and ignition to match. If the door and ignition don’t match the locksmith will have a lot of extra work because they essentially need to do twice the work.

Where is the vehicle?

People will often answer where they are located and not where the car is located. For example, the person might be over a friend’s house in University Heights when their vehicle is at their home in Beachwood. This doesn’t make much of a difference if one of our locksmiths is in Shaker Heights but we’ve had cases where customers were over 45 minutes away from their car! After getting an address, the locksmith company can determine which locksmith should go to the job and provide the customer with an estimated arrival time.

Is there anything else we should know?

This catch all question can provide some odd responses. A lot of odd things can happen to vehicles and this question might prompt a potential customer to provide some helpful information. Sometimes cars will have broken doors, known electrical issues, dead batteries, or other issues that help the locksmith determine pricing, difficulty of a job, and a better estimate for how long the job will take to complete.

If you call up Lock Alchemy for a car key in North East Ohio, we may ask you several questions but you are always welcome to ask us questions! Please feel free to email or call us, and we’d be happy to answer any questions you may have about car keys!