AI made simple for locksmiths
Pins all over the bench.
Booked picks up.
A locked-out caller won't wait for a callback. Booked answers in your company's name, books the job into your windows, and puts it on your phone.
Free demo. No signup. The demo line is a sample plumbing shop. Yours answers as your business.
What your callers hear
Here’s how a call goes. Short, friendly, and the job ends up on the schedule.
- Gets the name, number and address
- Offers only your open windows
- Sends you the job the second it’s booked
An AI receptionist for locksmith calls
Locksmith callers are some of the most impatient in the trades. Someone standing on a porch with the keys on the kitchen counter will dial the next listing if you don't pick up. So will the new homeowner who wants every lock rekeyed before the movers show. Booked answers the calls you can't reach, in your company's name, and gets the job on your schedule.
It doesn't play locksmith. Booked collects what's going on, the caller's name, number and the service address, then offers two of your open windows. It doesn't verify who owns the door or the car; you do that on site, the way you always have. And it only repeats the prices you've written, which matters in a trade where callers have been burned by a cheap phone quote that tripled at the door.
Answering in your real company name with honest pricing language is how a legitimate shop sounds on the phone. Our homeowner guide on how to spot a legit locksmith covers the same ground from the customer's side, and it's worth sharing.
The calls locksmiths get, and how Booked handles each
Booked asks every caller what they need, then their name, the best number and the address with the unit and city, one question at a time. Here's how locksmith calls go.
House or apartment lockout
Soonest windowA lockout feels like an emergency to the caller, but "locked out" on its own doesn't trip the urgency rules. Booked offers two of your open windows and books the one they pick, with the address and unit so you can head straight there. If the caller says it's an emergency, the call is flagged urgent.
Your settings: Keep same-day windows open if you run lockouts all day. Booked can only offer the times you've left open.
Car lockout or lost car keys
Soonest windowThese callers are often in a parking lot, not at home. Booked still asks for the address, so you'll get a store name or cross streets in the caller's words, along with any make and model they mention.
Your settings: If you do car keys, spell out which kinds you handle, like basic lockouts versus key programming, so callers needing something you don't do become messages.
Child or pet locked in a car, or someone trapped inside
UrgentIf the caller says emergency, or that someone is trapped inside, the call is flagged urgent and your safety step is read first. A calmly worded call about a kid in a car may not trip the rules, which is why your safety step and your own callback both matter.
Your settings: Write the step as plainly as it gets: "if a child or pet is locked in a hot car, hang up and call 911 now."
Rekeys after a move or a lost key
BookedPlanned work that fills out a good day. Booked books a window and notes how many doors or locks the caller mentions, so you have a rough idea of how many cylinders you're walking into.
Your settings: If you charge per cylinder, write it the way you'd say it on the phone, like a trip charge plus a per-lock price, and it's repeated exactly.
Lock changes, deadbolts and smart locks
BookedInstalls book into your windows like any other job. If the customer already bought their own hardware, their description of it comes through in your alert.
Your settings: Say whether you install customer-supplied locks, and at what price, so callers hear your policy before you're standing at the door.
"How much for a lockout?"
BookedThe question nearly every lockout caller asks first. Booked repeats your price notes word for word, like a service call plus labor or a range you're comfortable with, and only quotes the numbers you give it, not a lower one to win the job.
Your settings: An honest range beats a teaser price. Write the one you'd stand behind at the door.
Safes, access control and commercial master keys
MessageBigger or specialty work usually needs you on the phone. Unless you list it as a service, Booked takes the caller's name, number and what they need, and you call back with the right questions.
Your settings: A business asking about a master key system is worth a fast callback, so check messages between jobs.
Booked gathers job details only. Proof of ownership or residency is checked by you, on site.
The locksmith year, and when the phone lights up
Lockouts happen every day, but the planned work and the rushes follow a calendar. Here's the rough shape in many markets.
- Late spring to summer
Moving season rekeys
Home sales close, leases turn over and new owners want the old keys dead. Rekey and lock change calls stack up, often with a moving truck already on the way.
- Winter mornings
Car lockouts and stubborn locks
In cold markets, people lock the keys in a car they left running to warm up, and frozen or sticky locks finally give out. Those calls cluster before work.
- Late summer
Lease turnover and property managers
Apartment turnovers and student rentals bring batches of rekeys and lock changes between tenants, almost always on tight timelines.
- Holidays
Lost keys and travel
Shopping trips, parties and travel mean lost keys, car lockouts in crowded lots, and homeowners asking about better locks before they leave town.
What a missed call can cost a locksmith
Lockout callers rarely leave a voicemail. They dial the next number. Pull a week of missed calls from your phone and swap in your own figures.
- Calls you missed in a week
- 10
- Say 8 of them called the next locksmith
- 8
- Say 4 were jobs you'd have taken
- 4 jobs
- Average ticket, lockouts and rekeys mixed (use yours)
- $150
- Lost in that week
- $600
Gone each month, at about 4.3 weeksabout $2,600
A rekey customer you answer today is the one who calls you for their next lockout, and they tell the neighbors who they used. That repeat work isn't counted here.
Set up in 5 minutes
No tech skills needed. Hear your receptionist yourself before a single customer does.
- Keep your number
- Turn it off with one dial code
- No contract. Cancel anytime.
- Tell it about your businessServices, service area, hours, what to say about price.
- Forward your missed callsKeep your number. One dial code and unanswered calls roll to Booked. See the codes for your carrier.
- Get jobs on your phoneName, address, problem and arrival window, the second it’s booked.
One plan
$15 to activate, then
No contract. Cancel anytime.
Locksmith FAQ
Does Booked verify that the caller owns the property or car?
No. Booked takes the job details and books the window; it doesn't check ID or ownership. That stays with you on site, where you can look at a license, a lease, a registration or whatever your policy requires. If you want callers told what to have ready, add that line to your notes and it's repeated.
Will it give a lockout price over the phone?
Only the words you give it. Write a range, or a service call plus labor, so the price at the door matches what the caller heard. Booked repeats your line exactly and won't lower it, round it or make one up.
Is a lockout treated as an emergency?
Not by itself. The urgency rules listen for specific words, and "locked out" isn't one of them. If the caller says emergency, or says someone is trapped inside, the call is flagged urgent, your safety step is read and you get an URGENT alert.
Can it handle late-night lockout calls?
You choose the after-hours mode. Booked can keep booking into any late windows you open, book only urgent calls, or take messages for the morning. If you run nights, open late windows and it will fill them.
Will it book car key programming?
If you list it as a service, yes. If you only do certain makes or key types, say so in your service notes. Callers who need something you don't handle become messages, so you're never booked for a key you can't cut or program.
How does it help against fake locksmith listings?
It answers in your real company name, repeats the honest pricing you wrote, and books into your own windows, which is how a legitimate shop sounds. It can't take listings down, but it keeps you from losing the callers who did reach your real number.
Do I keep my number?
Yes. You forward calls you don’t pick up to your Booked line. Turn it off anytime with one dial code.
How long does my phone ring first?
Your phone rings first. On AT&T and T‑Mobile you pick 2, 3 or 5 rings. Verizon rings 4 to 6 times, or tap decline to send it to Booked right away. You can also have it answer every call.
Will customers know it’s AI?
It sounds natural and keeps it short. If someone asks, it tells them it’s the virtual receptionist. Honesty builds trust.
Locksmith business guides
Straight answers to the questions locksmiths ask about pricing, hiring, calls and growth.
- How locksmiths should price lockoutsHow to price house, car and commercial lockouts: common ranges, what legitimately raises the bill, and how to keep the door price matching the phone price.
- How to verify ownership before opening a lockA printable checklist for verifying ownership or residency before you open a house, car or business, plus the red flags that mean you should walk away.
- How to give honest locksmith quotes over the phoneThree locksmith phone quote scripts: a house lockout, a caller who wants one number, and a lost car key. Plus why each one works and the lines to never say.
From Booked Learn
- How to spot a legit locksmith, and how honest shops prove it fastThe locksmith scam callers fear, the signs of a legit locksmith they look for, and how honest shops prove it in the first minute of the call and at the door.
- Rekey or replace your locks?Just moved in? Why rekeying usually beats replacing your locks, how it works inside the cylinder, when new hardware makes sense, and a new-home key checklist.