Locksmith Questions, Answered

It depends on the job. A residential lockout, a whole-house rekey, a commercial panic bar and a programmed car key are all priced differently. What's consistent is how we do it: the full price is quoted on the phone before we come out, including the service call, and that's what you pay. Call with the details and you'll have a number in a minute.

Emergency calls outside regular hours may be priced differently than scheduled daytime work, and the exact amount is stated on the phone before you decide. There is never a surprise on arrival.

No. Action Locksmith San Diego is fully mobile, based in Ocean Beach. Everything, including key cutting and programming, happens at your location. Read more about how we work.

Yes. California requires locksmiths to be licensed by the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services, and our license number appears in the footer of every page on this site. We'll also give it to you on the phone.

Because a licensed locksmith is required to verify you're authorized to enter the home, business or vehicle. It's a safeguard for property owners, including you.

Use a local company with a San Diego phone number, ask for the California license number, get the total price on the phone, expect an ID check, and be suspicious of anyone who wants to drill a normal lock right away. Full checklist on our emergency locksmith page.

Get somewhere safe, call (619) 304-9446, and tell us where you are and what you're locked out of. We'll give you a price and a time. Have your ID ready for when we arrive.

It depends on where you are in San Diego and where the van is at that moment. We're based in Ocean Beach, so the beach communities and Point Loma are usually quickest, and every caller gets a drive time we can keep rather than a number we can't.

Almost never. We pick or bypass first, which leaves everything as it was. Drilling is a last resort for broken or very high-security locks, and we tell you before doing it and replace the lock on the same visit.

Tell us immediately when you call. It moves you to the front of the line. If the situation is dangerous, call 911 as well.

Rekey, unless the locks are worn out or you want a security upgrade. Rekeying is faster and cheaper and makes every old key useless. Details on our residential locksmith page.

Usually under an hour for a typical house with two to four exterior doors. Each lock is opened, re-pinned to a new key and reassembled on the spot.

Yes, that's called keying alike. As long as the locks share a compatible keyway we can do it during a rekey. If a lock doesn't match we'll say so and give you options.

Coastal-rated hardware in stainless steel or solid brass with a quality cylinder. Cheap plated locks corrode fast in the salt air around Ocean Beach, Mission Beach and Point Loma.

Yes, on homes, ADUs and vacation rentals. We recommend a model for your door, install it and program it, and show you how to manage codes.

Yes. Original mortise locks, glass knobs and skeleton-key hardware in neighborhoods like Mission Hills, North Park and Kensington can usually be serviced and rekeyed rather than replaced.

Usually you need to rekey, not replace. We rekey every door that key opened and issue a controlled set of new keys. If you had a master key system, it might be a single door. See commercial locksmith services.

A keying plan where one key opens everything, sub-master keys open groups of doors, and individual keys open single doors. It gives owners and managers convenience and gives staff only the access they need.

Yes. We install and repair exit devices on wood, hollow-metal and storefront doors, including alarmed versions.

Yes, across San Diego, on turnover rekeys, common-area doors, gates, mailbox banks and keying systems. We can invoice the management company.

Yes. We generate a key from the lock or the vehicle's key code and program the transponder or fob so the car starts. Bring ID and proof of ownership. See automotive locksmith services.

For most vehicles, yes, and we come to you instead of you towing the car. Some late-model European and luxury cars need dealer-only tools; you'll hear that on the phone, not in the driveway.

Not necessarily. A dead battery, lost programming or a worn blade can all look like a broken fob. We diagnose first.

Yes. Mall garages, downtown structures, campus lots and beach lots are everyday calls.

The city of San Diego only, all of it. Beaches and Point Loma, Downtown and Uptown, the central mesas, the northern communities along I-15, and Otay Mesa and San Ysidro in the south. See every neighborhood on our service areas page.

No. Those are separate cities outside our service area. Keeping our territory to the city of San Diego is how we stay fast.

Ocean Beach, San Diego 92107. We're a mobile locksmith with no storefront.