Emergency Locksmith in Phoenix, AZ

What counts as urgent in Phoenix

Safety comes before any lock. If a child, an animal or another person is trapped or in danger, call 911 before you call about a door.

After that, a lock problem is urgent when the door cannot be secured and the surroundings raise the stakes.

• Extreme heat. Phoenix logged 70 days at or above 110°F in 2024, with 118°F recorded on both July 5 and July 8. Being shut out in that weather is worse than in a cooler month.
• Monsoon storms. The National Weather Service's Phoenix office says monsoon season officially runs from June 15 through September 30. On August 31, 2023, a dust storm swept most of the metro with visibility down to a quarter mile or less and damaging winds above 55 mph. An entry that cannot be closed and locked as a storm like that approaches is urgent.
• Break-ins. A forced door or frame that leaves the home open; see below.

While you wait, get out of the sun and into shade or air conditioning. Do not force the door or climb through a window; a cut or a fall turns a lock problem into an injury.

After a break-in

Report it to the police before touching anything. If someone could still be inside, wait outside and call 911 from there. Officers should see the forced door and frame as they are, so photograph first and repair later. Once the scene is cleared, the priority is a door that shuts and locks, even if the permanent fix waits.

Vacant and unsecured buildings

Phoenix's Neighborhood Preservation Ordinance, Chapter 39 of the city code, defines an unsecured structure as a vacant one with a damaged or open door, window or other opening not secured to city standards against unauthorized entry (Section 39-3). Section 39-8 treats a building that has been vacant and unsecured for more than forty-eight hours on more than one occasion during a twelve-month period as a nuisance and a violation. Under Section 39-22, if an owner served with a notice of violation does not comply within thirty days, the city may correct the condition and assess the property for the cost. The copies read for this page are archived versions of the code, so check the current text before relying on a time limit. For the owner of an empty house or shop that was forced open, securing the opening follows the police report. This summary of the code is not legal advice.

What to send

• what happened: lockout, forced door, snapped key or a lock that will not close
• whether anyone is at risk, whether the police were called, and the report number if you have one
• the address or cross streets, and whether it is a house, apartment, business or vacant building
• photos of the door, the frame and the lock

For specific cases, see house lockout and car lockout. Heat and housing citywide are on the Phoenix page.