Locked Your Keys in the Car? What to Do in Singapore

It happens to careful people. You put the key down to lift the shopping into the boot, close the lid, and hear the doors lock. Or a child presses the lock button while the key sits in the cup holder. Many modern cars lock themselves automatically, so a key left inside is now one of the most common reasons drivers in Singapore call a locksmith.

Here's what to do, in the right order.

1. Is anyone, or any pet, inside the car?

If a child, an elderly person or a pet is locked inside, call 995 immediately. Don't wait for a locksmith or for someone to bring a spare key. A parked car in Singapore heats up fast, and children are far more vulnerable to heat than adults.

SCDF will break a window to get a child out if it has to. In June 2022, officers smashed a rear window in Tiong Bahru to rescue a one-year-old boy after the car locked itself with the keys inside. A window can be replaced. While you wait, stay by the car where the child can see you, and try to shade it if you can.

2. If everyone is safe: two quick checks

• Try every door and the boot. It sounds obvious, but in a hurry people try the driver's door twice and forget the others. On some cars, the boot or a rear door stays unlocked.
• Is there a spare key? If it's at home and someone can bring it, that may be the cheapest fix. If home is across the island, a locksmith is often faster.

Some newer cars can be unlocked with a phone app or a digital key, but only if you set it up beforehand and your phone isn't the thing locked in the car.

3. What not to try

Online videos make it look easy with a wire hanger or a ruler. On a modern car it rarely is, and it's easy to cause damage that costs more than the call-out:

• Bent hangers and rulers tear the rubber window seals and scratch the paint. Inside the door, they can snag wiring or the window mechanism.
• Prying the door frame can bend it, so it never seals properly again. That means wind noise, and water getting in during the next downpour.
• Breaking a window is a last resort for emergencies only. Side and rear glass is expensive and can take days to replace, and you can't leave the car unlocked overnight.

4. Who to call

• Your insurer's roadside assistance. Some motor policies include locksmith help, but coverage varies by provider. Check your policy or call the hotline and ask.
• Your dealer. Useful if you've lost every key, but a dealer can't usually get you into a locked car tonight.
• A car locksmith. The quickest route for a simple lockout. Uncle Thomas opens cars of all major brands 24/7 with non-destructive tools, with the price agreed before we set off.

5. Have these ready

• Where you are: the carpark name, deck or level, and lot number. In a basement, send your location on WhatsApp before you go back down, because the signal there is often weak.
• Your car: make, model and year.
• Proof the car is yours: your NRIC plus the vehicle registration details. If the papers are in the car, you can pull up the log card on your phone through OneMotoring with Singpass. We check this before we open any car. It protects you, because it means nobody can use a locksmith to get into your car.
• Company, rental or private-hire car: written permission from the company or owner, by WhatsApp or email.

6. How we open it

We use specialist car-opening tools that work through the door's natural gaps without forcing the frame, cutting seals or touching the glass. You'll see exactly what we're doing, and once the door is open, we check the key works and the car locks and unlocks normally before we leave.

7. Make sure it doesn't happen again

• Get a spare key. A spare fob kept at home turns the next lockout into a short trip. We clone spare fobs for all major brands; see lost car key fob.
• Keep the key on you while loading the boot. A pocket or lanyard beats the boot floor.
• Learn your car's hidden key. Most smart keys hide a mechanical key that opens the driver's door if the fob battery dies. Each brand page has the steps.

Brand guides: Toyota, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi, Volkswagen, Mazda, Lexus, Land Rover, Hyundai, Kia, Nissan, Porsche, Volvo, Mitsubishi, Subaru, and all car brands.