What Sets the Cost of a Replacement Car Key
The cost of a replacement car key is set by the key type, the keys still held, the make and its security system, the time, the place and the route.
Inta-Lock Car Key Guides. Updated October 2026.
This page prints no price list. The figure for one car is confirmed on the call, and a quote is agreed before work begins. Each of the six factors moves the cost of a car key in one direction across the market, and the number of working keys is the factor an owner controls.
Insurance does not change what a key costs. It changes who pays, and only where the policy wording includes keys. The details to have ready for the call are set out in five steps below.
Why Does a Replacement Car Key Have No Single Price?
A replacement car key has no single price because the key, the car and the situation differ from one job to the next, and each difference changes the parts and the work behind the figure.
A car key is a part and a piece of work together. The part is the key, with its blade and its electronics. The work is the cutting, the programming that pairs the key with the car, and the visit to the vehicle. Each changes from car to car.
A price range printed on a page covers many different jobs and describes none of them exactly. No price list is published by Inta-Lock, and no figure appears in this guide.
The figure for one car is confirmed on the call. A quote is agreed before work begins.
Which Factors Set the Cost of a Replacement Car Key?
Six factors set the cost of a replacement car key, the key type, the working keys left, the make and its security system, the time of day, the place the car stands and the route chosen.
| Cost factor | Where the cost is lower | Where the cost is higher | What to have ready for the call |
|---|---|---|---|
| The key type | A mechanical key, a cut blade with no electronics | A smart key, a fob the car senses with no button pressed | Which key the car uses |
| The working keys left | One working key in hand, so a new key is added beside it | No working key, so the car is opened first and nothing is there to copy | How many keys still work |
| The make and its security system | An older key system with less protection around programming | A later key system with more protection around programming | The registration of the car |
| The time of day | A visit arranged ahead in the working day | An urgent visit at night, where out of hours work is priced separately | When the key is wanted |
| The place the car stands | A car with clear access, close to the locksmith | A car further away or hard to reach, where the journey is priced | Where the car is parked |
| The route chosen | A key made at the vehicle, so the car stays where it stands | A key made at a fixed site, where a car with no working key is transported first | Whether the car drives |
The table gives the direction of each factor in the general market for car keys and no figure, and it is not a statement of Inta-Lock pricing. The fourth and fifth rows differ between providers, so ask on the call whether the hour or the journey changes the cost of the key.
How Do You Get a Quote for a Car Key by Phone?
Five steps take a caller from the first ring to a quote for one car key, agreed before work begins.
- Call Matt on 0116 442 2084. The phone is answered 24 hours a day, every day of the year.
- Give the registration, the make, the model and the year of the car, which identify the key and its security system.
- Say which key the car uses and how many working keys are left, then say what happened to the old key, whether it is lost, stolen, broken or worn.
- Say where the car stands and when the key is wanted, and ask whether the hour or the journey changes the cost.
- Ask what the quote covers, the key, the cutting, the programming and the visit. A quote is agreed before work begins.
Identity and authority to request the work are checked before a key is made. The V5C vehicle registration certificate, which names the registered keeper, and photo identification are common examples, and what applies is confirmed on the call.
A lost, broken or worn car key in Leicester or Leicestershire? Call Matt with the registration, and a quote is agreed before work begins.
Call Matt on 0116 442 2084How Does the Key Type Change the Cost?
The key type changes the cost across the market because each type adds electronics and programming to the one before it, so the cost rises from a mechanical key to a smart key.
- Mechanical key. A mechanical key is a cut blade with no electronics. The work is cutting alone, which places it lowest in cost.
- Transponder key. A transponder key is a cut blade with a chip in its head that the immobiliser reads. The key is cut and then programmed, and the programming raises the cost.
- Remote key. A remote key is a transponder key with lock and unlock buttons, in a fixed case or a flip case. The buttons are paired with the central locking, which raises the cost again.
- Smart key. A smart key is a fob the car senses nearby, so the doors unlock at the handle and the engine starts from a button. It carries the most electronics of the four and sits highest in cost.
The guide to transponder, remote, smart and keyless keys sets out the signs that tell one type from another.
Why Does a Lost Only Key Cost More Than a Spare?
A lost only key costs more than a spare because the car is opened first and the new key is made with no working key to copy, while a spare is added beside a key that still works.
Across the market, the number of working keys separates two different jobs. With one working key, the blade is copied, the new key is programmed beside the old one and the car drives throughout. With no working key, entry to the car, a blade cut with no pattern to follow and programming with no key present all sit inside the cost.
A lost or stolen key adds security work as well. Missing electronic keys are removed from the immobiliser memory where the vehicle supports it. A mechanical blade still turns a physical lock unless that lock is changed or rekeyed.
For a second hand vehicle bought with only one working key, the advice of Thatcham Research in its car security guidance is to have the missing keys deleted and a spare added as soon as possible.
How Do the Make and Security System Change the Cost?
The make and its security system change the cost because each manufacturer protects key programming in its own way, and a later or more protected system takes more equipment and more steps to add a key.
The immobiliser is the security system that decides whether a key starts the engine, and adding a key means working with that system. Two cars of the same age from different makes take different key parts and different programming routes.
Access to security information is itself controlled. SERMI is the scheme that approves independent operators to access security related repair and maintenance information for motor vehicles. Inta-Lock is SERMI accredited.
Whether a car is among supported vehicles is confirmed on the call, before a quote for the key is agreed.
Do the Time and the Place Change the Cost?
The time and the place change the cost of a car key where a provider prices out of hours visits or longer journeys separately, and that practice differs from one provider to the next.
A mobile locksmith works at the vehicle, so the journey and the hour are part of the job. An urgent call at night and a visit arranged for the next working day involve the same key and a different visit.
Ask on the call whether the hour, the distance or the access to the car changes the cost of the key, and the answer forms part of the quote.
Does the Dealer Route Cost More Than a Mobile Locksmith?
The dealer route and the mobile locksmith route are each quoted for the individual car, so no general figure separates them, and the certain difference is the transport of a car that has no working key.
A dealership makes or supplies a key at its own site, and a mobile locksmith makes the key where the car stands. Where a dealership programmes the key on its premises, a car with no working key is moved there on a recovery vehicle. That transport is a cost outside the key itself.
With a working key in hand the car drives to either. Ask each provider what the quote covers, the key, the cutting, the programming and any visit or transport, so the two figures describe the same work.
Does Car Insurance Pay for a Replacement Car Key?
Car insurance pays for a replacement car key only where the policy wording includes keys, within the main policy or through key cover held as an add on or as a stand alone policy.
Insurance changes who pays for a key and not what the key costs. The Association of British Insurers guide to motor insurance sets out three levels of cover, third party, third party fire and theft, and comprehensive, and its summary of those levels does not name keys. The schedule of the individual policy states any cover for keys.
The Financial Conduct Authority reports on key cover sold as an add on and as a stand alone policy. The Financial Ombudsman Service notes that a policy can exclude cover where keys are left in or around the vehicle, so the wording is read before a claim is relied on.
Which Decisions Go With the Cost of a Key?
Four decisions sit beside the cost of a replacement key, and each one belongs to a page of its own.
How Does a Cost Guide Differ From a Quote for Your Car?
A cost guide explains the factors that move the figure for a car key, while a quote is the figure for one car, one key and one situation. A quote is agreed before work begins.
The work behind the quote, a key cut and programmed at the vehicle after a key is lost, stolen, broken or worn, is set out on the page for replacement car keys.
How Does a Spare Key Change the Cost?
A spare key is the opposite situation to a key replaced after a loss. The car drives and a working key is in hand. In the general market it is the lower cost job of the two for the same car. The page for spare car keys in Leicester covers a second key made at the vehicle while the first key still works.
Which Route Suits the Car, Locksmith or Dealership?
Cost is one part of the choice of route. Where the work happens, what each one asks of the owner and the security checks behind each are compared point by point in the guide to an auto locksmith or main dealer for a replacement key.
How Does Key Cover Weigh Against the Cost?
Key cover carries a premium, and a key is paid for when it is replaced. The premium, the claim limit and the excess decide whether car key insurance is worth it.
The figure for your car key is confirmed on the call, and the phone is answered 24 hours a day, every day of the year.
Frequently Asked Questions
What decides the price of a replacement car key in the UK?
The price of a replacement car key in the UK is decided by the key type, the working keys left, the make, the time, the place and the route, and no single price covers every car.
This page prints no price list. The figure for one car is confirmed on the call, and a quote is agreed before work begins.
Is a spare car key lower in cost than a key replaced after a loss?
Yes, across the market a spare key made while one key still works costs less than a key made for the same car after the last key is lost.
With no working key the car is opened first and the key is made with nothing to copy.
Is the cost of a car key agreed before the work starts?
Yes, a quote for the key is agreed before work begins.
The figure for one car is confirmed on the call, and no price list is published.
Does car insurance cover a lost car key?
Car insurance covers a lost car key only where the policy wording includes keys or key cover is held as an add on or a stand alone policy.
Insurance changes who pays for the key and not what the key costs.
What details does a locksmith ask for to quote for a car key?
A locksmith asks for the registration, the make, the model and the year, the key type, the number of working keys, what happened to the old key, and where and when the key is wanted.
Identity and authority to request the work are checked before a key is made.