What happens when you lose all your car keys?
Losing one key is an annoyance. Losing every key is a different problem, because there is nothing left to copy. A locksmith can't duplicate a key that no longer exists, so the new key has to be built from information about the car itself, then cut, and where the vehicle requires it, electronically matched to the car so it will actually start the engine.
People usually arrive at this point in a handful of ways: keys dropped somewhere between the beach and the parking structure, a bag or jacket that never came back, a spare that turned out to be as missing as the original, or a set that simply vanished from a pocket during a long day. The cause matters less than the result. You own a vehicle, you can't start it, and there is no key to work from. That is exactly what lost car key replacement is for, and it does not depend on having the original key.
One distinction is worth making early. If your keys are visible inside the car and the only trouble is getting through the door, that is a different and usually simpler job, handled on our car lockout page. This page is for the harder case, where every key is gone.
How do we make a replacement car key without the original?
The details change from vehicle to vehicle, but the sequence is consistent. This is how a lost-all-keys call normally runs when it comes to us.
- You call (213) 577-1366. The line is answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We ask for the make, model, year and where the car is parked.
- We tell you plainly what that kind of vehicle usually needs, and we say so when something has to be confirmed by VIN or in person before we can promise anything.
- A technician drives a mobile van to the car, so you don't have to tow it or get it anywhere first.
- We verify ownership. That means your photo ID and paperwork that ties you to the vehicle, such as the registration or title, matched against the VIN on the car.
- We work out the correct cut for your locks from the vehicle's information or from the lock itself, and we cut the new key.
- Where the vehicle requires it, we program the key so the car recognizes it. Remote buttons and push-button fobs are set up at this stage too.
- We test everything before we leave: the door locks, the trunk, the ignition or start button, and each remote function. You should see it work with your own eyes.
- Where the vehicle's system allows it, we can also discuss removing the lost keys from the car's memory so a stranger who finds one cannot use it.
Locked out or need a locksmith now?
We answer around the clock, every day of the year.
Call (213) 577-1366What should you have ready when you call?
A few details make the phone call short and the visit smooth. None of this is difficult to gather, even when you are stressed and standing next to a car that won't open or start.
- The make, model and year of the vehicle, and the trim or engine if you know it.
- The exact location of the car, including the level or space number if it is in a parking structure.
- The VIN, which is usually visible through the windshield on the driver's side and printed on your registration or insurance card.
- Your photo ID and the registration or title showing the vehicle is yours.
- Anything you know about the keys you had: a plain metal key, a key with a plastic head, a remote, or a push-button fob.
- A working phone number where the technician can reach you when arriving.
Can a locksmith handle every vehicle?
No, and anyone who says otherwise is not being straight with you. For most vehicles a locksmith can cut and program a new key on site. For some, depending on make, model and year, the software or key blanks are restricted, and the dealer is the only route that works.
We don't guess about this. If we aren't certain from the make, model and year you give us, we confirm by VIN and in person before starting work. If your car turns out to be a dealer-only case, we will tell you so directly rather than start a job we can't finish. At that point we can still help with the pieces that don't need the dealer, such as getting you into the car if it is locked.
For vehicles we can do, the type of key shapes the job. Some cars use a straightforward key, others use a key with electronics inside, and others use a fob with a push-button start. We cover the programming side on our transponder key programming page and the remote and fob side on key fob replacement. What your specific car needs is something we confirm, not assume.
How much does lost car key replacement cost in Santa Monica?
We don't quote numbers on a web page, because honest pricing for a lost-all-keys job depends on the vehicle in front of us. What we can do is tell you exactly what moves the cost up or down, so the figure you hear on the phone makes sense.
The main factors are these:
- Make, model and year. Some vehicles are simple to key from scratch; others involve more equipment, more steps, or more restricted access to key data.
- The type of key. A basic cut key, a key with electronics, a remote-head key and a push-button fob are all different amounts of work and material.
- Whether programming is needed, and how involved it is for that vehicle.
- How many keys you want made. Having a second key made during the same visit is usually more economical than calling us back later.
- Where the car is and when you call. A technician traveling to the car at night or on a holiday is a real cost of being available around the clock.
- Whether anything else is wrong, such as a worn ignition or a damaged door lock, which turns it into a repair as well as a key job.
- Whether the dealer is the only option, in which case the locksmith route isn't available at all.
Locked out or need a locksmith now?
We answer around the clock, every day of the year.
Call (213) 577-1366Is a locksmith or the dealer the lighter-cost option?
For many vehicles, a mobile locksmith is the more economical route, mostly because the car stays where it is. With the dealer route you generally have to get the car to the dealership first, and that can mean a tow or a long wait for an appointment. A locksmith who comes to the car avoids both.
It isn't true for every vehicle, though, and we won't claim it is. When the dealer is the only workable option, that is the answer we'll give you. The way to know is to call with your make, model, year and VIN and ask. We'd rather tell you honestly that the dealer is the right call than do something that won't work.
Why call Wilshire Lock & Key for lost car keys?
We have been in business since 1987, and we serve 140 cities across Los Angeles and Ventura counties. We run a storefront at 10740 Wilshire Blvd in Westwood alongside our mobile service vans, and that combination matters when your car is stranded. Technicians come to you, and there is a real shop behind them.
When you call (213) 577-1366, you reach our company, not a call center that resells the job to whoever answers a dispatch app. There is no middleman between your call and the technician. David, the owner and lead technician, oversees the work we do. You can read more about this side of our work on our automotive locksmith page, and about how our vans operate on mobile locksmith.
We also won't pretend a job is easier than it is. If your vehicle needs a VIN check, we'll tell you. If the dealer is the only path, we'll say that too.
What does a lost car key look like in Santa Monica?
Santa Monica is a city where people leave cars in a lot of different places. You might park in Downtown Santa Monica for a day near Third Street Promenade or Santa Monica Place, leave a car near Santa Monica College, park at Providence Saint John's Health Center for an appointment, or walk down to Palisades Park, the Santa Monica Pier or Tongva Park and come back to find your keys missing. In a city built around walking, keys are easy to drop. If it happens to you, our vans can come to the car wherever it is parked, whether that is a lot, a curb, or a building garage.
Residential parking is just as common a setting. Most Santa Monica residents rent, and the housing runs from 1920s–1940s bungalows and Spanish-style homes in Sunset Park and Ocean Park, to large Craftsman homes North of Montana, to a big stock of mid-century apartment buildings in areas like Wilmont and Mid-City. Condominium buildings line the Ocean Avenue and Wilshire corridors. In those apartment buildings, a lost car key often goes missing on the same ring as the apartment key. If that is your situation, tell us when you call. We can handle the car, and our contact page and phone line are the same way to raise the building side of it.
The coastal air plays a part too. A persistent marine layer and salt air are hard on exterior locks and hardware near the beach, and they are routine maintenance issues rather than emergencies. If your car lives outdoors in Ocean Park or another beach-adjacent spot and the key has stopped turning smoothly in the door, that is worth mentioning when you call, because we would rather check the lock while we are there than have you come back later.
Our storefront in Westwood is about 5 miles from Santa Monica. We serve all five ZIP codes, 90401 through 90405, and every neighborhood in the data we work from, including Pico District and Northeast Neighbors. We can't promise a specific arrival time on a web page, but we can tell you honestly on the phone what to expect for your location.
Locked out or need a locksmith now?
We answer around the clock, every day of the year.
Call (213) 577-1366What should you do right after you lose your keys?
Before you call, a few quick steps can save you a visit. If you can, retrace your last stops and check with any business, parking attendant or lost-and-found you passed. Keys do turn up. If they don't within a short search, don't keep looking for hours when a new key is a phone call away.
Don't buy a random replacement key or fob online and hope for the best. Keys that look right can fail to work with the car, and then you've paid twice. Tell us what you have and let us confirm what the vehicle actually accepts.
Once the car is running again, make a spare. Having a second key made at the same visit is usually more economical than starting from nothing again later, and a spare can be duplicated from a working key, which is covered on our key duplication page. If a key sticks, won't turn, or the car is hard to start even with a good key, the problem may be the ignition rather than the key, which our ignition repair page explains.
How can you check a locksmith before you hire one?
California requires locksmith companies to hold a BSIS LCO license, issued through the state's Bureau of Security and Investigative Services. Before any locksmith touches your car, ask for the license number and verify it with the state. That applies to us and to anyone else you call.
Other signs of an honest locksmith are simple. They ask for proof you own the vehicle. They explain what affects the cost before work begins. They tell you when a job belongs at the dealer. If a voice on the phone is vague about the company name or where it is based, treat that as a warning. We have a real storefront address, 10740 Wilshire Blvd, and a phone line, (213) 577-1366, that is answered every hour of every day.
Frequently asked questions
Can you really make a car key if I've lost every key?
Yes, for most vehicles. A new key can be made without any original by working from the vehicle's information and the lock itself, then programming it if the car requires it. A few vehicles, depending on make, model and year, are dealer-only, and we tell you plainly if yours is one. We confirm by VIN and in person.
Do you need the original key to make a replacement?
No. That is the point of lost car key replacement. If you still have one working key, duplicating it is a simpler job. If you have none, we build a new one from the car's own information.
Do I have to prove the car is mine?
Yes. We ask for your photo ID and paperwork tying you to the vehicle, such as the registration or title, and we match it against the VIN. This protects you as much as it protects us, because it keeps a stranger from getting a key to your car.
Can you come to me in Santa Monica, even in a parking structure?
Our mobile vans come to the car. Tell us the exact location, including the level or space number if you're in a structure, so the technician can find you. We serve all five Santa Monica ZIP codes, 90401 through 90405.
Will my old lost key still start the car after you make a new one?
It depends on the vehicle. On some cars, where the system allows it, the lost keys can be removed from the car's memory so they will no longer start it. On others that isn't possible. We confirm what your car supports when we look at it.
How long will it take?
We don't state a time on a web page because it honestly varies with the vehicle, the key type and your location. Call (213) 577-1366 and we'll give you a realistic idea based on your make, model, year and where the car is.
Is a locksmith or the dealer the lighter-cost option?
For many vehicles a mobile locksmith is the more economical route, because the car doesn't need to be towed. It isn't true for every car, and when the dealer is the only option we'll say so. Call with your make, model, year and VIN and we'll tell you honestly.
Do you work nights, weekends and holidays?
Yes. Our phone line is answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, all year. Calling outside normal hours can affect the cost, since a technician is traveling to you at that time, and we explain that on the call.
I lost my car keys and my apartment keys together. Can you help with both?
We can handle the car keys, and we can talk through the apartment side when you call. Be sure to tell us about both, since the right approach for a building depends on the lock and on who controls it. You can also reach us through our contact page.
More locksmith help in Santa Monica
Lost Car Key Replacement near Santa Monica
Reviewed by David, Owner & Lead Technician, Wilshire Lock & Key — in the locksmith trade since 1987.
Last updated 2026-10-11.