Getting locked out of your car or having a car key fail at the most inconvenient time is triggering in a way that standing outside your house isn’t. Usually, you’re in a strange place and you really need to get somewhere.
Who do you call in that situation, your car dealership or a locksmith?
When should you call the dealership?
Calling your car dealership is a good idea when you don’t know anyone who can do the job, like a local locksmith.
It saves you the trouble of having to shop around when you’re knee-deep in an emergency situation.
If you have smart keys, because these could be very difficult to reprogramme, sometimes it may be easier to call the dealership to have them replaced.
Why should you use a local locksmith?
But here’s the thing. Getting your replacements through the dealership could be time-consuming.
First of all, replacing lost car keys is not their main line of business. They may have to order your keys if they are not in stock.
Since their business is selling cars and not replacing locks, they have to charge fees that make doing so worth their while. Translation: it’s going to be expensive to have a car dealership replace your keys.
You’ll also likely have to make an appointment to have your keys changed and somehow get your car there. How are you going to do this standing, locked outside your car?
Here are some things a local locksmith can do in this situation that a car dealership won’t be able to:
A locksmith can come to you
Unless you plan to have your car towed to a dealership you aren’t going anywhere. It’s also unlikely the car dealership will come to you.
A local locksmith can be at your location in under half an hour and have your key reprogrammed in 15-30 minutes as well.
Most of them run emergency services
Many of them are able to offer convenient service at this speed because it’s built into their business model.
A lockout or losing your keys is almost always an emergency situation. Because locksmiths understand this, many of them offer 24-hour service and aren’t surprised by whatever they find once they get to your location since they’ve seen just about everything.
Locksmith services are specialized
Why wait to get an appointment at the car dealership when you could have the same service performed right in front of you by someone who is just as, or even more qualified than the tech at the dealership?
Getting new car keys is no longer as simple as having a new pair cut.
Because of the specialized nature of the repair, car lock technicians have to be trained and certified. First, a car lock technician has to acquire basic skills. Then he specializes depending on the type of car lock and brand of car.
This type of training takes years. You shouldn’t assume because a technician comes to the location and makes a repair look easy that it didn’t take time and effort to get to that point.
Their services are cheaper
Even when you’re careful with your car keys, they get broken, lost, stolen or the batteries go dead. You know that they’ll have to be replaced and you prepare to pay accordingly.
With your car dealer, you may pay up to hundreds more per key. A local locksmith on average will charge you between $50 and $100 to unlock your car and $75 per hour to change your locks.
You’ll have your replacements more quickly
You won’t have to make an appointment to have the repair done. You won’t have to wait days or weeks if they have to have your key shipped.
There’s nothing like being able to get back to your life as quickly as possible.
We operate an emergency service in Wynwood
If you find yourself locked out of your car, call us for help. You can reach us at 1 786 358 6116 or visit our website for a full list of our services.