Car Key Replacement in Alexandria, VA

Proving the car is yours

Because a new key can start the car, anyone cutting or programming one has reason to see that the car is yours. Have these ready:

1. Photo ID.
2. The vehicle registration or title in your name, issued by your state motor-vehicle agency. The name should match the ID.
3. For a leased or financed car, the lease or loan paperwork, since the lender may hold the title.
4. For a company car, a letter from the business authorizing the new key.

If the registration is locked inside the car, say so in your request.

Where the car sits in Alexandria

The Census Bureau's 2024 estimates put 22.4 percent of Alexandria homes in attached houses and 36.3 percent in 50-plus-unit buildings, so a car may sit in a shared garage or lot. That shapes what to arrange:

• Building garages. Management may control garage entry. Arrange with them ahead of time for a service vehicle to get in, and note the level, the space and any posted height limit.
• Townhouse lots and shared parking. Note the space and how to get through any gate.
• On the street. A car with no working key cannot be moved, which matters on one of the city's signed snow emergency routes once a snow emergency is declared. Say so in your request; car lockout covers the route rules.

Key details that help

• The VIN, printed on the registration and on a plate at the lower corner of the windshield.
• The car's make, model and year, and whether it starts with a key or a button.
• How many keys are lost and whether any working key remains. Copying a working key is simpler than replacing the last one.
• The type of key: plain metal, transponder, remote head or smart key.

If only the remote has stopped working, see key fob programming.