10 Tips to Avoid Getting Locked Out

10 Tips to Avoid Getting Locked Out

It may not be a new thing to find yourself in a situation where you can gain access to your car, house, or office, due to one reason or the other. Some of these reasons may include misplacing your keys, faulty locks, broken keys, and etc. In short, it’s mostly to do with the lock or the key. Locked out situations can be quite intimidating and stressful, not to mention that they can cost you a lot in terms of time and money. For instance, getting locked out of your car while heading to work or a job interview can have plenty of unpleasant consequences.

When preparing to head home from work, getting locked out can mean looking for other means of transport, not to mention the possibility of having to jeopardize your car’s security and that of your own. Similarly, home and office lockouts may also be costly and intimidating. But with more of the bias on car lockouts, what can you do to avoid such embarrassing and intimidating scenarios? As the saying goes, prevention is always better than cure. It takes some discipline and precautionary measures. Below are the 10 tips to avoid getting locked out of your vehicle.

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1. Remember To Always Have Your Car Keys on You

While misplacing the keys is one most common scenario when it comes to car lockouts, a good number of people tend to forget the keys inside the vehicle ignition or car seat. For the latter, the secret is to always remember to have your keys on you, especially when exiting the vehicle. When getting out of your car, be sure to confirm that you have your keys either in the pocket or your purse/wallet. To make it even easier, you can get a colorful and easily noticeable key holder charm or chain to help you keep track of your keys. This may also apply when it comes to avoiding home lockout situations.

2. Cross Check before You Leave

While this point may sound similar to the one above, it’s all about developing some sense of discipline here. If you carry you car keys or house keys in your purse or pocket, it is important to always cross-check to see that you have everything you need before leaving the premises or exiting your car. Making it a routine will go a long way in sparing you the intimidation of having to wait until your locksmith arrives or trying other ways of gaining access to your property/vehicle.

3. Lock the Doors Using the Fob

It’s easier for keys with a built-in locking mechanism. It ensures that you have the keys on you when locking your car doors.

4. Replace Your Fob Batteries

When the batteries in the key fob go dead, the implement may fail to open your doors. Always check to ensure that the batteries are in good shape.

5. Have Faulty Bad Locks Replaced

Due to reasons such as quality, wear and tear from usage, and the effects of weather elements, home locks, and car locks may become faulty with time. If it reaches a point where you have to strain for the lock to open, it is highly advisable that you call a reputable locksmith for advice on lock replacement. This can spare you the humiliation that you would have to face in case the key broke inside the lock when trying to open or lock your premises or ignite your vehicle. Depending on the type of vehicle you own, you may have to replace the ignition only or both the locks and the ignition. The other option would be to have the key replaced if it’s the one with a problem.

6. Tryout Keys

Especially for older cars and motorcycle models, try out keys can also be helpful, these are a set of post-market keys that are sold as a bunch so you can try out and find the one that works on your car of motorcycle lock. However, you have to do some research before buying auto lockout tryout keys.

7. Auto Lockout Tip for winter

If water droplets find their way inside a lock, they can cause lock freezing, which makes it difficult for the key to operate. If this happens, lock for a hot water bottle and place it on the lock for a couple of minutes to melt the ice. Use either GT85 or WD40 to disperse the water and get your lock functional again.

8. Have Spare Keys Made

The best way to avoid auto lockouts is to have a car locksmith make an extra set of keys for you. However, this depends on the key type and the vehicle model. Not all keys can be duplicated from a local hardware store or by an inexperienced car locksmith. It depends on whether your car keys come with both a fob and RFDI chip and only one of these. Upon getting your spare keys, place them in an easily accessible place.

9. Don’t Wait Till It’s Late To Hire an Auto Locksmith

Sometimes it just happens and you find yourself locked out in the middle of nowhere, even having utilized all or some of the above tips or none. In such a situation, you may need a car locksmith to rescue you as fast as they can get there. The trick is to always have the contacts of trusted locksmiths on standby at all times. The lockout may not be avoided as it has already happened but a reliable car locksmith can save you the time and frustration. Look for one in your local area that operates on a 24/7 basis for emergency auto lockout services.

10. Practice the Above Tips

These are just wordings and can be meaningless if not put into practice. Be sure to go through the above tips and call your professional locksmith for assistance on any of the areas you may require more details for.