The order to try when you're standing in a Vancouver hallway without your keys, what a locksmith needs before opening a suite door, what it costs, and how to make sure it doesn't happen twice.
Locked out of your apartment in Vancouver? Try the concierge or building manager first, then a roommate or emergency contact, then a locksmith. In many strata towers nobody on site holds a key to your suite, so a locksmith is the realistic option, and a plain deadbolt on a suite door opens for $95 to $160.
Work down the list; the first three are free.
Don't wedge the lobby door open while you wait; it's a fire door and the strata can fine for it. And don't climb to a West End balcony because the slider might be open.
Your suite door is a fire door. It sits in the fire separation between the corridor and your unit, and the City's fire safety guidance for building owners says fire doors must close and latch properly, with supervisory staff checking every 24 hours that they do. That is why every suite door in a tower has a closer that swings it shut and a latch that catches the moment it closes.
Newer buildings add a lever that is always locked from the corridor side. Step out to the garbage room in your socks, the door closes behind you, and you're locked out of a suite you never locked. Older walk-ups in Kitsilano and Mount Pleasant usually have a deadbolt you throw by hand, so their lockouts are mostly lost keys, not slammed doors.
We open doors for the people who live behind them, and we check. Bring one of these to the door:
Moved in last week and your licence still shows the old address? Show us something with your name and the new address once the door is open. We won't open a suite for someone who isn't standing there, or a rental a landlord has lawfully re-secured after an order of possession.
One legal point for tenants. Section 31 of the Residential Tenancy Act says a landlord can't change the locks on your unit unless you agree and get new keys, and you can't change a lock on your unit unless the landlord agrees in writing or the director orders it. A lockout caused by a landlord swapping the cylinder is a Residential Tenancy Branch dispute, not a locksmith job.
Many Vancouver condos come with high-security cylinders. Mul-T-Lock's MT5+ platform, for one, uses patented keys and a coded key card that only authorized dealers can read, and is built to resist picking, drilling and bumping. Medeco cylinders take a similar approach. That's good news on a normal day and slow news on lockout night.
A standard deadbolt is picked or bypassed and you carry on using your key. A high-security cylinder often can't be picked in any reasonable time, so the choices narrow to working the latch if only the latch is holding, decoding the lock, or drilling the cylinder and fitting a new one on the spot. A steel fire door in a steel frame leaves no gap for a card or a shim, so it's the cylinder or nothing. That is why the high-security row on our price list sits higher, and why spares for a restricted key come through your strata or the dealer.
Our pricing page lists a house or suite lockout on a plain deadbolt at $95 to $160, and a suite with a high-security or smart lock at $135 to $220. A key that snapped off in the cylinder is drawn out for $90 to $150. If someone kicked the door before calling, making a forced door lockable again with the lock replaced runs $160 to $300, and rebuilding a split jamb and frame $150 to $350.
Those ranges cover day and night; the lock type, a call in the small hours and a steel door with no play in it push a job toward the top. You'll hear the figure on the phone, and it's the same figure on the invoice. Our home and suite lockout and emergency locksmith pages cover what happens on the call.
Renters first. The Residential Tenancy Regulation lists the fees a landlord may charge: a refundable key deposit no larger than the cost of replacing the key, and nothing at all if that key is your only way in, plus the direct cost of replacing keys you lost or extra keys you asked for. An after-hours fee for the caretaker letting you in isn't on that list; ask the Residential Tenancy Branch before paying one.
A broken lock is different from a lost key. Section 33 of the Act counts damaged or defective locks that give access to a rental unit as an emergency repair: phone the posted contact at least twice, give the landlord reasonable time, then have it fixed and claim the cost back with the receipt.
Strata owners answer to the bylaws. The Standard Bylaws let the strata enter your lot without notice in an emergency and with 48 hours' written notice otherwise; nothing obliges it to let you in, and most councils don't hold suite keys. The Strata Property Regulation caps fines at $200 per bylaw contravention, which is what a propped fire door or a damaged corridor door can cost you. And swapping in a keypad deadbolt on a door that fronts on common property needs the strata's written approval first under Bylaw 5, which it must not unreasonably withhold.
For a lockout at a house, a car or a shop rather than a suite, the general locked out in Vancouver post covers the rest.
| Option | Who to call | Cost | Typical wait |
|---|---|---|---|
| Concierge or front desk | The desk in your lobby | Free, or a let-in fee the building sets | Immediate if the desk is staffed |
| Building manager or caretaker | The emergency number posted near the mailboxes | Free, or the direct cost of a replacement key | Their working hours; often nobody overnight |
| Roommate or key-holding neighbour | Your phone | Free | However long the trip across town takes |
| Locksmith | 604-227-9083 | $95 to $160 plain deadbolt; $135 to $220 high-security or smart lock | Arrival window given on the call, day or night |
| Fire department via 9-1-1 | Only if someone inside is at risk | No charge to enter; the door is forced and the repair is yours | Emergency response |
Only in an emergency. E-Comm 9-1-1's guidance is that the line is for when someone's health, safety or property is in jeopardy or a crime is in progress. A toddler alone inside or a pot on the stove qualifies; a forgotten key does not. Firefighters force entry and leave the repair to you.
For a rental, the Residential Tenancy Regulation lists what a landlord may charge: the direct cost of replacing a lost key, and a refundable key deposit no larger than that cost, and nothing if the key is your only way in. An after-hours let-in fee isn't on the list, so ask the Residential Tenancy Branch first.
Usually not. A plain deadbolt or a latched lever is picked or bypassed and you keep using your own key. Drilling is the last resort on high-security cylinders like Mul-T-Lock or Medeco, and when it happens the cylinder is replaced on the same visit, which is why the high-security row runs $135 to $220.
Yes. Photo ID with the suite address, or photo ID plus a lease, strata form or utility bill, or the building manager confirming in person. We record what we saw on the invoice. If you have none of that, we can still come, but the door stays shut until someone who can vouch for you arrives.
Standing in the hallway right now? Call 604-227-9083 or book online, tell us the building, the floor and what the lock looks like, and you'll have a price before you hang up.
Services and articles that go alongside this guide.
Pick-, drill- and bump-resistant cylinders with keys that can’t be copied at the hardware store. Cut, pinned and registered in-shop.
1/2" steel door, digital keypad, fitted and bolted on site.
Car keys are priced by vehicle. Pick what you need and we’ll collect your make, model & year to text you an exact quote.