Spare Car Keys Cut in Leicester
Inta-Lock cuts and programmes spare car keys at your home or workplace in Leicester while one key of the vehicle still works.
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A spare car key is a second key made beside a working one. It is cut to fit the locks and programmed to the immobiliser, so it opens and starts the vehicle in its own right.
Matt East makes the spare at the vehicle and agrees the quote on the call, before work begins. A driver with no working key left is in a different position, and that job is the lost key service, not this one.
How a Spare Key Joins the Vehicle
A spare car key joins the vehicle in three parts, a blade for the locks, a chip for the immobiliser and a remote for the buttons.
The spare is added to the keys the vehicle already accepts. The key you hold stays in use, and the immobiliser then recognises one key more than before.
The blade part has a page of its own, car key cutting in Leicester. A spare with a cut blade and no programmed chip opens the door of an immobilised vehicle and does not start the engine.
The Spare Key Decision for Each Situation
Six key situations lead to six different decisions about a spare car key. Find the row that matches the keys you hold today.
| Current key situation | Risk carried | Spare key route | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| One working key, the second key lost some time ago | Losing the one key turns planned work into an all keys lost job | A spare is cut and coded beside the working key | Two working keys, and the lost key is raised on the call |
| A used car bought with one key | The second key was never handed over and its whereabouts are unknown | A spare is made, and the missing key is discussed before the visit | Two keys whose holders are known |
| Two or more drivers share one key | The vehicle stands unused whenever the key is away with the other driver | One spare for each regular driver, within the number of keys the vehicle accepts | Each driver holds a key |
| The one key has a worn blade or a tired case | The only key is also the weakest part of the vehicle | The spare blade is cut to the pattern of the lock, not traced from the worn edge | A fresh key in daily use and the worn key kept in reserve |
| Two working keys, a third wanted | Low, because a reserve key already exists | A further key is added where the vehicle has a free key position | Three keys for a household or a business vehicle |
| No working key at all | The vehicle is already off the road | Not a spare key job, the work starts from the vehicle itself | Handled as lost car keys, a separate service |
The first five rows are spare key work, because a key that starts the vehicle is present. The sixth row is the opposite state and sits outside this page.
A Spare Key Visit From Call to Test
Five steps take a spare car key from the phone call to a second working key.
- Phone 0116 442 2084 and give Matt the make, model, year and registration, plus the kind of key you hold now. The quote is agreed on that call, before work begins.
- Matt drives to the address where the vehicle is parked. Identity and authority to request the work are checked on arrival.
- The blade of the spare is cut on the machine carried in the van.
- The chip of the spare is programmed to the immobiliser, and the remote buttons are paired where the key has them.
- The spare is tried on the lock, the start and the remote functions it is supplied to operate, with you present.
A Google Review of a Spare Key Visit
Inta-Lock holds 4.9 out of 5 from 51 Google reviews on the Leicester listing. The review below comes from a driver who ordered a spare key for a Mini, and it is printed as written.
View all Google reviewsNeeded a spare key for our Mini - Matt’s response to our enquiry was very quick, concise and included all the information we needed. Matt was available to come to our house to do the work very quickly, arrived on time and carried it all out as agreed with no issues. Great customer service
Alan Johnson, Google review
What to Have Ready for a Spare
A spare car key visit runs on two sets of things, the details given on the phone and the items present at the vehicle.
- The make, the model and the year
- The registration number
- The kind of key in use now, plain, remote, flip or proximity
- The number of spare keys wanted
- The vehicle itself, parked where the van reaches it
- Each key you hold for it, working or not
- The documents named on the call
Identity and authority to request the work are checked before a spare key is cut. The V5C vehicle registration certificate, which names the registered keeper, and photo identification are common examples, and what applies is confirmed on the call.
On some vehicles the programming session registers the whole set of keys again. A key left in a drawer during that session drops out of the set, which is why each key you hold is at the vehicle.
Where a Spare Car Key Is Kept
A spare car key protects you only when it is somewhere other than the place the main key gets lost.
A spare kept inside the vehicle goes wherever the vehicle goes, and a spare on the same ring as the main key is lost in the same moment.
A spare held by a second driver, or stored at a second address, stays within reach when the main key is shut inside the vehicle or lost away from home.
A proximity key answers a radio signal from the vehicle. A signal blocking pouch stops that exchange while the spare is stored. The battery of a stored remote also runs down, so the spare is tried at the vehicle from time to time.
What Shapes the Quote for a Spare Key
Three things shape the quote for a spare car key, and the figure for your own vehicle is agreed before work begins.
- The kind of key. A plain blade is cutting work alone. A transponder key adds programming, a remote adds pairing, and a proximity key is mostly programming.
- The vehicle. The make and the model year decide how the immobiliser admits a further key, and so how much work the spare involves.
- The number of keys. Each further spare made at the same visit is quoted on the same call.
Inta-Lock publishes no price list. The figure comes from the call and applies to the vehicle and the spare key described on it.
A spare car key made on your own driveway in Leicester while the first key still works.
Call Matt on 0116 442 2084
Matt East Makes Each Spare Key Himself
Matt East quotes, attends and makes each spare car key in person. His locksmith training dates from 2011 and his automotive key work from 2019, and the count of jobs stands above 1,000.
The equipment in the van for spare key work includes Xhorse and Autel. Garages and dealers have referred vehicle key work to Matt since 2021.
- SERMI Accredited
- NCFE Qualified
- NNAL Member
- Enhanced DBS Checked
- Insured to £5 Million
Leicester Areas Covered for Spare Car Keys
A spare car key is made at the address where the vehicle is parked, a driveway, a street or a workplace car park, in Leicester and Leicestershire. Matt is with you within the hour in Leicester, and the same day across Leicestershire.
The phone is answered 24 hours a day, every day of the year, so the call fits around a working day.
Leicester AreasView All Areas We CoverSpare Car Keys and the Neighbouring Situations
Four neighbouring situations sit close to a spare car key, and each one changes what the work involves.
A Spare Key Compared With All Keys Lost
Comparison. Both jobs end with a key that opens and starts the vehicle, made at the place the vehicle stands.
Differences. A spare starts from a working key, so the vehicle is already open and already starts. With all keys lost there is nothing to work beside, and the key is made from the vehicle itself.
Similarities. Identity and authority to request the work are checked in both cases, and a quote is agreed before work begins in both.
Effects. The spare is the planned form of the same work and the lost key job is the unplanned form, which is set out under lost car keys in Leicester.
A Coded Spare Compared With a Cloned Key
Comparison. Both produce a second key that starts the vehicle, and the two look the same in the hand.
Differences. A coded spare is registered with the immobiliser as a key in its own right. A cloned key carries a copy of the identity of the existing chip, so the vehicle sees one key where two exist.
Similarities. Both rely on a working key being present, and both have a blade cut to the same locks.
Effects. When the original is later lost and removed from the immobiliser memory, a clone of it stops starting the vehicle and a coded spare carries on. The method that suits your vehicle is confirmed on the call, and the coding work itself is described under car key programming.
A Used Car Bought With One Key
A used car that arrives with one key leaves a second key unaccounted for. The spare key visit puts a second key in your hand and does not, on its own, change what the missing key does.
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. Raise the missing key on the call, so the quote covers it.
The visit takes place where the car is parked, a drive in Knighton and Clarendon Park as readily as a street elsewhere in the city.
A Spare Key Sent Through the Post
Inta-Lock also offers Keys By Post, a separate service from the attended spare key visit on this page. Mercedes and Land Rover keys are available by post for supported models only.
The steps of that service are set out under keys by post. A spare cut and programmed at the vehicle in Leicester or Leicestershire is the attended route.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a working key needed to make a spare car key?
Yes, a working key is present for a spare car key, because the spare is made beside a key that already starts the vehicle.
With no working key the work is no longer a spare. It starts from the vehicle and is booked as lost car keys.
Do spare car keys have to be programmed?
Yes, a spare car key for a vehicle with an immobiliser is programmed to that immobiliser, and a spare for a vehicle without one is cut only.
The remote buttons are paired as a further step where the key has them.
Does the existing key still work after a spare is made?
Yes, the existing key carries on working after a spare car key is made, because the spare is added to the keys the vehicle accepts.
On vehicles where the session registers the whole set again, the existing key is registered in that same session. That is the reason each key you hold is at the vehicle.
How long does a spare car key take to make?
The time for a spare car key depends on the kind of key and on the way the vehicle admits a further key.
A plain blade is cutting work alone, and a remote or proximity key adds programming. Matt gives the time for your own vehicle on the call.
How much does a spare car key cost?
The cost of a spare car key depends on the kind of key, the vehicle and the number of keys made, and a quote is agreed before work begins.
Inta-Lock publishes no price list, so the figure comes from the call.
How many spare keys does a vehicle accept?
A vehicle accepts a fixed number of keys, set by its immobiliser, and that number differs from one make and model year to the next.
Where key positions are free, more than one spare is made at the same visit. The number for your own vehicle is confirmed on the call.
Is a spare key made for a keyless car?
Yes, a spare proximity key is made for supported vehicles with keyless entry and push button start.
A proximity key is mostly programming work. Whether your own model is supported is confirmed on the call from the make, model, year and registration.
Are identity checks made before a spare key is cut?
Yes, identity and authority to request the work are checked before a spare car key is cut.
The V5C vehicle registration certificate and photo identification are common examples, and what applies is confirmed on the call.
One call to Matt puts a second working key beside the first.