Locked Out of Your Business in Jacksonville? Back Inside Without a Broken Window

What to do when you're locked out of your business

Business lockouts are stressful. They happen right before an opening, in the middle of a delivery, or on the morning of a big meeting. The steps you take in the first few minutes decide whether it's a short pause or a lost day.

1. Don't force the door. A broken window or a pried frame gets you in, but it leaves the building unsecured and costs far more to fix than a lockout.
2. Check every entrance. Back doors, loading doors and side doors sometimes use a different key, and someone on your team may have it.
3. Call us at (904) 509-0907. Tell us the address, the door type and whether any keys are lost or stolen.
4. Gather your team. Pick a spot nearby, like a coffee shop with Wi-Fi or a neighbor's lobby, so people can keep working while they wait.
5. Let customers know. A quick sign on the door or a post on social media keeps the day from turning into bad reviews.

What we'll ask when we arrive

Opening a business is a trust job. Before we open the door, we check a photo ID and something that ties you to the business, such as a business card, a lease or utility bill in the business name, or a phone call with the owner or manager. In buildings run by a property manager, we may need their approval too. If you manage property yourself, see our page for property managers and realtors.

Business doors we open

• Glass storefront doors with narrow aluminum frames and the thin mortise deadlocks found in most strip centers
• Office suites with lever locks, deadbolts and mortise locks
• Rear steel doors with rim cylinders and panic bars
• Warehouse and roll-up doors, gate locks and padlocks
• Interior doors, file cabinets and desks

We work on most commercial brands, including Schlage, Yale, Medeco, Mul-T-Lock, Baldwin and Kwikset.

How we open your door without damage

We pick or bypass the lock with the same kinds of tools we use every day, and we don't break glass. On storefront doors, we work around the lock without prying the frame, which keeps the weatherstrip and the glass seal intact.

If the lock itself has failed, for example a broken cam or a snapped key inside, we explain the options before we start. When a cylinder has to be drilled, we replace it on the spot so your door locks again that day. We've learned these methods the old-fashioned way: by doing the work.

After the lockout: rekey and take back control

Most commercial spaces have had many hands on the keys: past tenants, former employees, cleaning crews and contractors. After a lockout, especially one caused by a lost or stolen key, it's a good time to ask who else could walk in.

• Rekey the locks. We change the pins inside your existing locks so old keys stop working. You keep the hardware and get new keys the same day. See lock rekeying.
• Cut enough spares. We cut duplicate keys on site, so each manager has one and one stays somewhere safe off-site.
• Plan for growth. If you have many doors and people, a master key system lets each person open only the doors they need.
• Fix the hardware that caused it. A sagging storefront door or a panic bar that won't latch often leads to the next lockout. See exit device and door closer repair.

Keep it from happening again

• Keep one spare off-site, with an owner or manager who lives nearby.
• Keep a key log of who has which key, and collect keys when people leave.
• Service stiff locks early. A lock that needs a jiggle today will strand you on a busy morning.

Our blog has a longer office lockout guide for business owners.

What a business lockout costs

We tell you the price on the phone before we come out. It depends on:

• The door and lock. A standard office lever opens faster than a high-security cylinder.
• Time of day. Early-morning and closing-time calls may cost more.
• Extra work. Rekeying, new keys or a replaced cylinder are quoted per lock before we start.

See our pricing guide for what affects the total. You get the full price on the phone before we drive out, and we confirm it before any work starts.

Where we work

We handle business lockouts across Jacksonville: offices along Baymeadows Road, Deerwood Park and Southpoint, shops along San Jose Boulevard and Beach Boulevard, restaurants in San Marco, and warehouses on the Westside and Northside. That includes Southside, Mandarin, San Marco and Jacksonville Beach. For everything else we do for businesses, see our commercial locksmith services.

Locked out right now? Call (904) 509-0907 or text us the address. We're available Mon & Fri 7 AM–2 PM and Tue & Thu 7 AM–6 PM.