FAQ · Open 24 Hours
Car Lockout Questions and Straight Answers
Everything people actually ask on the phone, answered here instead. Including the ones where the honest answer is that you do not need us at all.
Car Lockouts — The Questions We Get Most
How much does a car lockout cost?
A standard car lockout is $125 flat. That is the whole price for a normal sedan, coupe, hatchback or small crossover, and it does not change because it is 3am, a weekend or a holiday. Full-size SUVs, pickup trucks, cargo vans and commercial vehicles are quoted on the call, so you get the exact number before anyone heads out. You hear the number on the phone before anyone is sent out, and that number is what you pay.
Will unlocking my car damage the door, the lock or the paint?
It should not, and that is the entire point of calling someone with the right tools. A proper auto lockout uses an air wedge to create a few millimetres of gap at the top of the door frame, then a long reach tool goes through that gap to work the interior handle or the lock button. Nothing is drilled, nothing is pried against the paint and no glass is broken. A coat hanger and a screwdriver are what bend door frames and tear weather stripping.
Do you have to break a window to get into a locked car?
No. Breaking a window is not a lockout technique, it is what happens when someone does not have lockout tools. On a normal vehicle lockout the door is opened through the door frame with an air wedge and a reach tool, and the glass is never touched. The only time glass comes into the conversation is a genuine emergency, such as a child or a pet locked inside on a hot day, and in that situation you should be calling 911 first.
My keys are locked in the car and the engine is still running. Is that different?
Yes, and you should say so the moment you call. A running car with the doors locked is burning fuel, sitting unattended and, if it is in a driveway or a garage, venting exhaust the whole time. It is treated as a higher priority than a parked lockout. Do not leave the vehicle to go find help; stay with it if it is safe to do so and call from where you are.
Can you get into a push-to-start car when the key fob battery is dead?
Yes. Almost every push-to-start vehicle has a mechanical override built in, because manufacturers know fob batteries die. There is usually a hidden emergency key blade inside the fob itself and a concealed keyhole on the driver door handle, and most cars will also start if you hold the dead fob directly against a specific spot on the steering column or the start button. The problem is that none of that helps if the fob is sitting on the passenger seat, which is why we get you into the cabin first.
Do you unlock houses, apartments or businesses?
No. Auto Lockout Service is vehicles only. Cars, SUVs, pickups, cargo vans, box trucks and commercial fleet vehicles. We do not do residential or commercial building lockouts, and we would rather tell you that in ten seconds on the phone than send someone who cannot help you.
Do you cut new keys or program key fobs?
No. We open locked vehicles. We do not cut keys, program fobs, replace ignitions or extract broken keys from a cylinder. If your key is genuinely lost or broken rather than locked inside, an automotive locksmith or your dealer is the right call, and we will tell you that rather than take the job.
What areas do you cover?
All five New York City boroughs and Nassau County on Long Island. That means Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island, plus every town across Nassau from Great Neck out to Massapequa and down to Long Beach.
Are you open 24 hours?
Yes, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including holidays. Lockouts do not happen at convenient times. Most of them happen at the end of a shift, in a parking lot, in the rain, or at the exact moment you are already late.
How do I pay?
Major credit and debit cards, and contactless mobile payment. You get the price before the job is accepted, so there is no negotiation once your door is open.
What do you need to know when I call?
Four things: where you are, which is a street address or a cross street plus a parking level if you are in a garage; the year, make and model of the vehicle; whether the engine is running; and whether the keys are visibly inside. That is enough to know which tools the job needs and to quote you accurately on the spot.
Can you unlock a car in a parking garage or an underground lot?
Yes. Garages, driveways, apartment lots, street parking, work yards and shopping centre lots are all normal. Tell us the level and the nearest ramp or elevator when you call, because that is genuinely the hardest part of finding you in a multi-storey garage.
Do you unlock rental cars, leased cars and company vehicles?
Yes. A lockout on a rental, a lease or a company car is the same job mechanically. We will ask you to confirm you are the authorised driver, which is standard practice and takes one question.
How do you know the car is actually mine?
We ask. Before the door is opened you confirm ownership or authorisation and show identification. It is a short, routine check that every legitimate lockout operator does, and it is the reason you want a legitimate operator opening your car rather than someone who does not ask.
Can you unlock a cargo van or a box truck?
Yes. Sprinters, Transits, ProMasters, box trucks and pickups are a normal part of the work, and they need different tools than a sedan because the doors are heavier, the frames are thicker and the linkages sit differently. Tell us what you are driving on the call so the right equipment shows up the first time.
My keys are locked in the trunk. Can you help?
Usually yes. On most cars the route into a locked trunk runs through the cabin, using the interior trunk release or by folding the rear seats down, so the job starts as a normal door opening. Some vehicles have a genuinely separate trunk lock with no interior path, so tell us the year, make and model when you call and you will get a straight answer before anyone is sent.
Should I just call the police or the fire department?
Only if someone is in danger. If a child, an elderly person or a pet is locked inside a vehicle, call 911 immediately and do not wait for a locksmith. For an ordinary lockout with nobody inside, emergency services will generally not open your car, and you will lose time waiting to find that out.
Is roadside assistance through my insurance cheaper?
Sometimes, and it is worth checking if you are not in a hurry. Many auto policies, credit cards and manufacturer warranties include a lockout benefit. The trade-off is that those programmes subcontract the work out and you have less control over the timing. If you have the coverage and the time, use it; if you need the door open now, call directly.
Do you charge more at night, on weekends or in bad weather?
No. A standard car lockout is $125 at 2pm on a Tuesday and $125 at 2am on a Sunday in the snow. Charging a premium at the exact moment someone is stuck outside in bad weather is not how we want to run this.
What is the fastest way to reach you?
Call (718) 600-1581 directly. There is no app to download, no account to create and no form that has to be answered before anything moves. You describe the vehicle and the location, you get a price, and the job starts.
Questions About Specific Lockout Situations
Trunks, running engines, dead fobs, vans and fleets each come with their own questions. Each service page has more.
How long does it take to open a locked car?
Once someone is standing beside the vehicle, most standard cars are open in a few minutes. The variable is travel, not the work itself — a garage level, a large lot or heavy traffic adds far more time than the door ever does.
Do you need the vehicle registration?
We need you to confirm you own the car or are authorised to drive it, and to show identification. We do not require the registration document itself, which is helpful given it is usually locked in the glovebox of the car you cannot get into.
My car has no trunk button inside. Can you still help?
Usually yes, via the fold-down rear seats, which give direct access to the load space once a door is open. If your particular vehicle has neither an interior release nor folding seats, tell us the year, make and model on the call and you will get a straight answer before anyone is sent.
Can you open the trunk without opening a door first?
On most cars there is no reason to, because the door is the intended route to the trunk release and it is the least invasive one. Going at the trunk lock directly means working on the latch and the lock cylinder, which carries more risk to a part that is expensive to replace.
Should I call 911 instead?
Only if someone is inside. If a child, an elderly person or a pet is locked in the running vehicle, call 911 immediately and do not wait for a locksmith. If the car is empty, emergency services will generally not open it and calling them first only costs you time.
Will the car run out of fuel before you get there?
Almost certainly not. A modern engine idles at a low fuel burn, and unless the tank was already near empty you have hours rather than minutes. It is still not a situation to leave sitting.
Where is the hidden keyhole on my car door?
On most keyless cars it is on the driver door handle, behind a small plastic cap that pops off — often with the key blade itself used as the lever. On some models the cap is on the underside or the rear edge of the handle rather than the face. Your owner's manual shows the exact location for your model.
My fob is dead but I am holding it. Do I need you?
Possibly not, and we would rather tell you that. Pull the emergency blade out of the fob, find the concealed keyhole on the driver door handle, and you are in. Then hold the dead fob against the start button to start the engine. Call us if you cannot find either.
How much is a van or truck lockout?
It is quoted on the call rather than published, because the range across vehicle types is genuinely wide and a single number would either overcharge the easy ones or undercut the hard ones. Tell us the make, model and year and you get the actual figure before anyone is sent out.
Can you open the back of a cargo van?
Often, but it depends on the vehicle and the lock. Rear and side load doors vary far more between makes than cab doors do. Tell us which door the problem is on and what the vehicle is, and you will get a straight answer on the phone.
Can our drivers call you directly?
Yes, and it is usually the fastest route, because the driver knows the vehicle, the door and the exact location. If you would rather everything went through a manager, that works equally well.
Do you need an account set up first?
No. There is no account, no retainer and no minimum. The first call can be an emergency at 4am with nothing arranged in advance.
Questions From Each Part of the Service Area
Lockouts play out differently depending on where the car is parked. Each area page carries the full set for that place.
Do you cover all of Queens, including the Rockaways?
Yes. Queens is the largest borough by area and the coverage runs the whole span of it, from Astoria and Long Island City on the western edge through Flushing, Elmhurst and Forest Hills, out to Bayside and Little Neck on the Nassau line, and down through Ozone Park and Howard Beach to Far Rockaway. The Rockaway peninsula is included.
Do you cover all of Brooklyn?
Yes, the whole borough. Greenpoint and Williamsburg on the north end, through Bushwick, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights, down through Park Slope and Sunset Park to Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights, and across the southern shore through Bensonhurst, Sheepshead Bay, Brighton Beach and Coney Island.
Can you reach a car in a Manhattan parking garage?
Yes, and most Manhattan lockouts are in garages rather than on the street. The single most useful thing you can do is tell us the garage address, the level, and whether the attendant has to let someone in. Garage staff will usually not open a customer vehicle themselves, which is why the call comes to us.
Do you cover the whole Bronx, including City Island?
Yes. Riverdale and Kingsbridge on the west side, Fordham, Norwood and Bedford Park through the middle, Morris Park and Pelham Bay to the east, Mott Haven and Hunts Point in the south, and out across the bridge to City Island.
Do you cover the whole of Staten Island?
Yes, North Shore to South Shore. St. George, Stapleton and Port Richmond at the north end, through West Brighton, Todt Hill and New Dorp in the middle, and down through Great Kills, Eltingville and Annadale to Tottenville at the southern tip.
Do you cover all of Nassau County?
Yes, the whole county. The North Shore through Great Neck, Port Washington, Roslyn and Glen Cove; the central corridor through Mineola, Garden City, Westbury, Hicksville, Syosset and Plainview; and the South Shore through Valley Stream, Freeport, Baldwin, Rockville Centre, Merrick, Massapequa and Long Beach.
If Your Question Is Not Here
Call (718) 600-1581 and ask. Describing the vehicle and the situation takes about thirty seconds and gets you a real answer, including the answer that it is not a job for us. For the everyday case, the car lockout service page covers the detail; for the money question, the pricing page spells out what is and is not included; and if you want the specifics for where your car is parked, start with Queens, Brooklyn or Manhattan.
LOCKED OUT OF YOUR CAR? WE OPEN IT. 24 HOURS.
Rather Just Ask Someone? Call Now
(718) 600-1581 — 24 hours a day. $125 flat on a standard car across the five boroughs and Nassau County.
(718) 600-1581