AAA membership. It will pay for itself many times over. Everything from roadside assistance, lockout help, and even discounts at hotels and special offers.

@Coach Cal Is My Dream Weaver: Don't forget 7% off at NAPA.

It'd be cheaper to borrow a car or have someone drive you to a dealer to get a new key made. The keys that start the car are usually really expensive these days, but you can get a key that'll just unlock the doors for ~$10.

Locksmiths aren't regulated by any government agency. Every time I have called a locksmith, I ask if they have an established location I can go to. If they tell me, "we're a mobile service", I hang up. Yellow Pages also knows that they are scammers but don't really care.

@undefined: @Coach Cal Is My Dream Weaver: Amex is good for these kind of things, too.

Also, keep a spare key in your house. Duh.

Why on earth don't more drivers bite the bullet and pony up for a AAA membership, if for no other reason than the free locksmith/tow when in a pinch? For $47 (a basic membership), the first free tow/vehicle lockout/flat tire/battery jump used has the membership paying for itself. That, and the contractor has an incentive to get you out of your jam ASAP so they can take another call and make another fee (as opposed to directly contacting Joe Tow Truck/Locksmith, who's gonna screw you out of as much time/money possible).

@I_am_Awesome:
And keep a spare key under the door mat to get into the house.

Agreed with AAA as well as finding a lock smith BEFORE you need it.

There are also the options of credit card keys, keeping / hiding a spare key, etc.

Although the price seems too high it still seems a matter of the old adage of paying someone to know "which screw to turn..." [pun intended]

You could get your tires filled with Nitrous for 1/3 of that. Sheesh. Huff and Puff, a-hole locksmiths.

@Coach Cal Is My Dream Weaver: This is one of the reasons AAA was invented!

@Zanorfes: They are in New York City.

@xoxor:
"Although the price seems too high it still seems a matter of the old adage of paying someone to know "which screw to turn..."

This is very true though. You dont know how to unlock your door or you wouldnt have called them, and while you could go buy the tool and do it your self, how much damage would you cause while doing it, and how long would it take you.

I get the same crap as a computer tech. Ive done jobs where we charge 300/hr with a 2 hour minimum for after hours emergency work, and it may take me 20 minutes to get on site and 20 minutes to fix a problem, and they get pissed about the charge. You arent paying me for my 40 minutes, you are paying me for the experience I have and obtained over years that allowed me to properly diagnose and fix the issue in 20 minutes. If anything, you should be happy it didnt take me the full 2 hours to fix, as now there is less downtime. I on the otherhand am out of bed (if I was in bed) and probabaly wont get back to sleep.

If you think the service is a rip off, dont use it, it is that simple.

@I_am_Awesome: It'd be cheaper to borrow a car or have someone drive you to a dealer

s/a dealer/my house/

/my car came with 2 keys

Shrew2u: Why on earth don't more drivers bite the bullet and pony up for a AAA membership, if for no other reason than the free locksmith/tow when in a pinch?

Because I have never, in 11 years of driving, forgotten my key (I was a latchkey kid, so the concept of forgetting/losing keys is alien to me :D ).

/And my insurance CO provides towing/roadside assistance.

@Coach Cal Is My Dream Weaver: AAA has saved my butt on numerous occasions. I even pay for the "Gold/RV" coverage because it allows a longer tow distance and covers motorcycles. (I once got a flat tire on my little 1973 Honda 325cc bike and they sent out a flatbed to haul it home. lol). But... Be prepared to wait considerably longer for help than a cash customer. I had to wait three hours once after locking myself out of the car.

Thanks for reminding me why I've been spending from $50-75 a year on AAA for the past few decades. Some years I've only needed to get a triptik and/or some maps out of it, but other years I've had flatbed tows, lockouts, and gas replenishment. In the end I'm still ahead, and the peace of mind knowing that I can call them to deal with it is completely worth it.

Now, if AAA could join the 21st century and transition their lobbying efforts toward a more appropriate transportation policy than just blanketing our planet with ONLY cars - THAT would make me feel even better about paying them each year.

@Zanorfes: Why would a business that unlocks cars need to have a storefront? Then they'd have to charge more than everyone else to cover rent, utilities, and insurance. If they charge more than everyone else, then they're likely to see less business and eventually go under. Which is probably why most people you're calling don't have storefronts in the first place.

@Coach Cal Is My Dream Weaver:
Plus all the free TripTiks you want!
..and I can take alot of TripTiks.

Not having a car anymore, it makes me just the tiniest bit sad that I don't also have the AAA anymore either. Good people. Saved me more than a few times. Totally worth the money.

Plus, flashing that card gets you into the swankiest of places...
at a 5% discount.

@Coach Cal Is My Dream Weaver: the AAA gold membership has paid for itself within a couple of months every time i had it with my little old car [often because of the 10% off a their AAA mechanic] and i just renewed it because i realized that even with a couple of sets of 2 ton jackstands and a hydraulic bottle jack - i can't change my own tire on my almost new, warrantied highlander because i can't get it out from under the vehicle. [my own strength problem, not the manufacturer's fault]

@PGibbons: but second A says it all: "A-merican A-utomobile A-ssociation...
maybe they'll be more open to the idea if we just work for 'greener' cars?

@Coach Cal Is My Dream Weaver:

I keep getting the mailers for this, but it always comes when I'm completely broke and expires faster than I can come up with any money. :P

AAA is so good that I have it even though I think my insurance also has a much more limited assistance available. It paid for itself the day I got it (needed a tow) and triple paid for itself within a couple of weeks (more towing and a dead battery). When I renewed this year I went for the AAA+ option, which is like $30 more. THAT paid for itself within 2 weeks (towing... again..). Soon, it'll be double paying when I have them do the battery service on the constantly-getting-towed car (I just got it fixed alright? no more tows for now!)

My friend today locked her car keys in the car (her son had lost the spare some months back). When she told me, I told her I have AAA, but she had already called her local mechanic who arrived with that airjet gizmo. I hadn't seen it before. (A number of years ago when I locked my keys, house & car, in the car, AAA came and did the car-stealing routine of using the blade gizmo to unlock the door to my voyager). She asked him how much and he says "whatever you feel is right." She gave him $15.

tennis ball, poke a pen sized hole, and do it yourself

OK, the AAA argument is kind of moot. Yes, it pays off in the long run. Thanks for the heartwarming, redundant stories.

What I want to know is, what exactly is one of these "air jets"? What does it look like, and how does it help get into your car? I'm kinda confused on how this issue arises.

@hellinmyeyes: I've never actually seen one myself, but the idea is that a jet of air into the lock pushes the internal components of the locking mechanism in such a way as to unlock the door.

@Coach Cal Is My Dream Weaver: I love my AAA membership.

@ShortBus: That's unusual that they took longer. I'm a Preferred Member (I think just a step above a regular member) and they always say "since you're a priority member, we'll be right there" and I've never had to wait longer than 20 minutes, any time of day or night.

@I_am_Awesome: BMWs, at least the E46 330i sedan I own, come with several keys: two "master" keys, with alarm functionality, microchips, and other craziness; a 'valet' key that can't open trunk or glovebox; a small plastic "ohshit" key that can be used to open the door in case you lock your master key inside. I keep the "ohshit" key in my wallet.

Yes, the dealership called it an "ohshit" key.

I keep an extra door key to my '92 Bonneville in my checkbook just in case that happens. I've never done it in the 7 years I've been driving but paying a few bucks to have an extra key made is worth it. I wouldn't do it with the ignition key because its one of those funky pellet keys so it costs about $45 bucks to get one copied.

Plus, the only place that can do that particular key is a dealer and I avoid car dealerships like the plague. Although, I may need to go to one to get new door gaskets within the next year. Those guys are usually sharks that I know how to deal with but choose not to.

@ajlei:
Honestly, AAA is worth having even if you never use it for anything. Just the peace of mind knowing that anytime, anywhere, I (and more importantly, my fiance) have somebody to call makes that $45 a year seem a pittance.

AAA in the Rocky Mtns blows. My work had a membership for a crappy 16 passenger van that was 15 years past it's useful life. Their entire subcontractor corp - at least the ones I've interacted with - seems to be made up of active meth addicts. When I called to complain that one guy they sent was making fun of a mentally challenged child in a neighbors yard, they said 'yeah but so what, you got your vehicle open didn't you?'. Nice.

USAA has a great roadside assistance plan for a fraction of AAA, as do most other ins cos.

@pinecones!: As Pinecones says, a tennis ball will work ina pinch, you have to carefully cut a hole to fit over the lock, which is usually raised, and try to shave the 'hair' from around the hole to make a better seal. Hold it around the lock with one hand, and smack it sharply with the other hand, actually you have to hit it very hard. Good luck, a lot of later model locks prevent this working with some clever gizmo. Pity because this or a bit of packing tape was all you used to need to get into any car.

There are many other roadside options besides AAA.

BP Motor Club is a bit cheaper, and as good. When I needed a tire change, guess who they subcontract out to? (Well I guess it depends on the area) An AAA repair van arrived in under 30 minutes. It also comes with other discounts for hotels and stuff.

Also some cell phone plans allow you to add-in a roadside plan for a few dollars extra a month (I have no experiences of how reliable they are though)

@ajlei: For me they always say there is a backup in the area and that it will be more than 60 min. Its ironic though that the tow truck usually arrives within 15-20 min though without fail. I guess they just say that to cover their butts in case they are late. Barring of course a major snowstorm or some kind of other disaster.

AAA membership is totally worth it though, regardless. One call is worth the yearly fee.

@mbz32190: @mbz32190: Edit: I guess it depends on your area as well. BP is cheaper for me and their basic membership provides a few other benefits than AAA.

I've often thought of buying one of those balloon things for myself, and then I remember that I'm probably dumb enough to keep it in the glovebox.

Most cities have Public Safety cops that you can call to come and unlock your car for you.

@mbz32190: AT&T roadside assistance is great. I've had them for years. For about the coast of AAA I get all the same stuff. Flatbed tows, battery jumps, vehicle lockout, and gasoline if I run out. It is tied to the phone, so it doesn't matter who has it. I could give it to my mom for a trip and she would be able to use it. She did in fact once, and she happened to lock her keys in the jeep.

I think they just changed rates to like 4.99 or something. Still worth it I think.

@ShortBus: If the wait is unnecessarily long, I would call the towing company directly and offer to pay cash, then go through AAA for reimbursement. I can see waiting a while for a lockout but for a tow, I would not wait more than a half hour (unless there is a very reasonable explanation).

@ShortBus: So they can make copies of keys and such. Locksmiths that do more than simply "mobile lockouts" tend to be more legitimate.

But you rarely need a locksmith to open a locked car. Towing companies can open cars. The only reason (that I can think of) to use a locksmith would be if you need them to drill out a lock and replace it (if you lost a key).

@howie_in_az:

Hah... someone I know calls the handles above the doors the "oh shit" handles, because she grabs the handle when husband's driving scares her (which is often)

@Shrew2u:
The only time I've ever had a need for AAA was when I let a woman drive my car and she did a 360 while driving in snow on the interstate and ran it off the road and down a very large hill. Fortunately she had a AAA membership, and the tow truck had a very long tow cable.

So if I had gotten a AAA membership when I started driving, I'd be in the hole by a large amount. Even if I need a tow truck and they charge me $500, I'll still be ahead.

@Jeff_McAwes0me:

Not any more. Cities have been dropping the Public Safety Cops because of rising liability insurance costs.

Keep spare keys everywhere.

I have copies of the valet key in my desk at work. A spare key hidden at home. My sister who lives 75 miles away has a copy (and I have hers). It is a whole lot cheaper to call sis and have her drive 75 miles to open my car then it would be to call one of those locksmith sharks.

@Coach Cal Is My Dream Weaver:I've had AAA for years now. It's worth every penny. I once had to use the towing service twice in one day! I wouldn't want to go without it.

If you have a Mercedes, even if it's a roach of a 240D that you got in a trade for a pair of old speakers, even if it has 362,967 miles and you're the 37th owner, call 1-800-FORMERCEDES. Free limited roadside assistance. Look it up for details.

@ShortBus: I love AAA. I've never had to wait overly long, either for a locksmith or a flatbed. I've used both.

@nybiker: Let's see...

Your friend's mechanic left where he was, drove to where your friend was, opened her door for her, and all she gave him was a lousy $15?

Sorry, but you need a better class of friends.