Written by Kelly Thompson
All it takes is a moment of forgetfulness — maybe you set your keys down and get drawn into conversation, leaving them behind. Maybe you put your key fob in your pocket, and take a dive into the pool. Regardless of the circumstances, losing your car keys is a much more expensive mistake than it used to be.
Prior to the 1990s, we didn’t all have fancy keys, which meant car theft was much easier. You could just go to the local hardware store and make a copy of anyone’s key. To prevent that, car manufacturers have adapted, first by adding transponders (small microchips) to ignition keys, and more recently, with the use of one-touch fobs that require programming in order to operate.
But it’s that same solution that has become a problem for many people — because technology or no, most people have had their keys go missing at some point. And now the bill to replace that theft-proof key can be anywhere between $100 and $700, depending on the make and model you drive.
So what can you do to avoid shelling out hundreds for a replacement? The best measure, according to Edmunds, is to invest in a replacement now, before it’s too late. Not only that, but if you have the replacement to play around with, you can teach yourself how to program it , instead of relying on the dealership.