Lost keys and replacement keys, Fortitude Valley
No original, no problem. We cut to the lock rather than copying a key, which means a lost bunch is an inconvenience rather than a hardware bill.
10 Trinity St, Fortitude Valley QLD 4006 · open 24 hours
How a key is made from the lock
The lock holds all the information needed to make its key. We decode it directly, cut a blank to those measurements on the spot, and test it before we leave. No original, no trip to a shop, no waiting for something to be posted.
Because it is cut to the lock rather than copied from a key, the new one is frequently better than what you lost — copies of copies drift, and an original cut restores the correct profile.
Spare key, or rekey? The honest answer
If the key went missing somewhere you control — down the back of a couch, in a jacket in the wardrobe — a new cut is all you need. If it disappeared in public, and particularly if it was on a ring with anything showing your address, a fob, a parcel locker tag, a work pass, then cutting a replacement leaves a working key to your house in the hands of a stranger.
In that case we rekey instead. The cylinder is re-pinned to a new key, every old key stops working immediately, and the visible hardware does not change at all. It takes a few minutes per lock and costs far less than replacing the hardware.
Replacement car keys
Cutting the key is only half of it. The transponder inside has to be coded to the car or the engine will not start, and remote functions have to be paired separately. All of that is done at the kerb for most makes on Australian roads.
We verify ownership before any car key is programmed — photo ID and registration, insurance or purchase documents. It is the same check every time, for everyone.
What is included
- Cut to the lock, no original needed
- Quoted in full on the phone
- Rekeying available the same visit
- Car keys cut and programmed on site
- Ownership verified on every job
- Open 24 hours, no night surcharge
When a rekey beats a new key
- Lost at a shopping centre or a venue
- Ring carried an address or a building fob
- Handed to a tradesperson and never returned
- A relationship has ended
- Property just settled and you hold the agent keys
- Anything where you cannot account for every copy
Questions about lost keys
Yes. We read the lock directly and cut to it. That is standard work and it is why a lost bunch does not mean new hardware.
Yes, and while the first one still works. A spare cut from a working key is a fraction of the cost of an all-keys-lost job later.
Substantially. Rekeying re-pins the cylinder you already own in a few minutes; replacing means new hardware plus fitting, and usually a new key for every door.
Yes, cut and programmed beside the vehicle for most makes. Bring photo ID and proof you own the car.
Need lost keys in Fortitude Valley right now?
Ring Fortitude Valley Lockout Rescue on (07) 3106 1855. You get a price, an arrival time, and nothing happens until you agree to both.
Emergency locksmiths for Fortitude Valley, Newstead and Bowen Hills. Apartment and venue lockouts, roller shutters and shopfronts, lost keys, rekeying, restricted key systems and break-in repairs. Licensed, insured, 24 hours.
Services
- Apartment lockouts
- Venue and bar call-outs
- Car lockouts and basements
- Lost keys and rekeying
- Restricted key systems
- Break-in and damage repairs
© 2026 Fortitude Valley Lockout Rescue · Fortitude Valley QLD 4006 · Licensed & insured locksmiths · (07) 3106 1855