Losing your keys can be a stressful and worrying experience. Whether you’ve been out to Trinity shopping centre, or wandering the streets of the city centre, it may seem like an impossible task to relocate your keys in this busy city, but if luck is on your side, it may be possible. In the meantime, there are several important steps you should take to ensure your car or property is secure, and that you can regain access.
At Leeds Lock Doc, we’re expert locksmiths who respond to a wide range of issues, both general and emergency situations. We can come to you when you’ve lost your keys to make spares and get you back into your home, no matter where you are in Leeds. When you first notice your keys are missing, there are several important steps to take to try and recover them, and our team has put together this guide to help.
Are Your Keys Recognisable?
Before we explore these important steps, it’s first essential that we discuss how you display your keys. Are they eye-catching? Do they have a unique keyring attached? When you’ve lost your keys, having a feature attached that can make them easily identifiable by you or friends or family helping you look is crucial. After all, it’s much easier to walk past a lone key in the street rather than a large and bright keyring.
Dressing your keyring up a bit is not only beneficial in helping you locate them, but are much more likely to be picked up by passersby who may leave them with a local business or the police to recover at a later time.
Retrace Your Steps
Leeds is a bustling city that can seem almost labyrinthian, especially when trying to find something like a lost key – almost akin to finding a needle in a haystack. However, one simple method to locate your lost keys is to retrace your steps. Did you go into any shops? Ask an employee if anyone has handed them in and if not, retrace the aisles you’ve walked down, check changing rooms, and even on shelves.
If you’ve lost your keys without going into a building, check the street you have walked down, and call into local businesses to ask if they have been handed in by a passerby outside – a common way lost keys are handed off. If you are still unsuccessful, it’s time to escalate.
Call Local Law Enforcement
While it’s unlikely, a good samaritan may have handed your keys into the local police station. For Leeds, that would be either at the Central Police Station, or District Police HQ. We recommend calling the station directly to enquire, but it is much more likely that your keys have been handed over to a business.
Contact a Locksmith
If you’ve tried searching and have had no luck, it’s time to get in touch with a locksmith to get a spare set of keys made and regain access to your property. At Leeds Lock Doc, we offer reliable locksmith services in Leeds and even provide emergency call outs. While we can’t speak for other locksmiths in the area, we can guarantee a quick response to get you back into your home.
Change Your Locks
In the world we live in today, it’s sad to say that even if you manage to locate your keys and get back into your home or car without the services of a locksmith or auto locksmith, we would still recommend changing the locks on your property. This is especially advised if your keys were lost for any substantial length of time. It isn’t difficult nor does it take long to create a key mould and unfortunately you don’t know if somebody has picked up your keys and then followed you to your property to gain access at a later time.
Get in touch with Leeds Lock Doc for more information!
If you would like to know more, or to arrange services from us, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Leeds Lock Doc now! We’re here to help and offer many services to help you gain access and secure your home. This includes burglary repairs, auto locksmith services, non-destructive entry, commercial locksmith services, and more. Contact us now for our general service or for a speedy emergency service.
Want to know more? Our blog is full of useful articles, including burglary and crime rates in Leeds, and looking at the laws and regulations on changing your locks in the UK.