If you’ve ever locked yourself out of your car, or home or need to change you locks, a lot of people turn to locksmiths to help them. There are certainly some easy do it yourself tips and tricks out there to help you, but it might be easier, and cheaper for you to call up an automotive locksmith.
Automotive locksmiths have a wide array of tools along with professional knowledge on locks and latest technology. But all of that comes at a price. Below, we discuss exactly how much a automotive locksmith charges, but also some things to consider to make sure you get your moneys worth.
How Much Does A automotive locksmith Charge?
The short version of this answer is that it really depends on what it is you are looking to do. On the low end, locksmiths can charge a little under $100, while others charge a little over $200. On average, a person will spend about $152 on the service.
Some low end jobs are things like lock removal, and key replacement while higher end is upgrading your lock or having a new lock installed. Again it depends on the job that you are asking for.
Things To Look Into When Hiring A Locksmith
But before you go and hire a locksmith, you want to make sure you get your moneys worth. The last thing you want is to find a automotive locksmith who will do the same job for cheaper. Below are some practices to keep in mind.
Be mindful of the locksmiths location. Some locksmiths will advertise locally yet they may be way out of town or even lacking professional training! For one you want to make sure that you have an address to work with so you know how far away they are. Furthermore if you call them and they answer with a generic title like “automotive locksmithservices” you want to be wary. In those situations ask for their legal business name and if they refuse to give that to you, call someone else.
Call up to three locksmiths for rates. You could even be bolder and call up four. Either way what you are looking for are accurate rates. You want to detail the problem and what you think needs to get done. From there you can pick out which one is the better option.
Interview them. Ask them about training, their previous jobs, whether or not they are insured and if they have additional charges hiding in there.
Ensure they are tech savy. These days, a simple automotive locksmith who can pick locks and install them isn’t enough. They should be familiar with biometric security, touchpad security and other security systems too.
Final Qualifications
The last two things you can keep in mind are simple. First, you want to make sure that the automotive locksmith knows how to unlock any kind of door. It’s their job, yes. But some may be keen to solve the locked door issue by drilling and replacing the lock instead.
Secondly, another good way to determine quality locksmiths is if you get locked out of your car, check roadside assistance if you have it. They have a list of automotive locksmiths already approved by the company to unlock car doors.