We got a call out last week to St Kilda about a car lockout. Bit of a tricky one.
a. Keys were left in the car.
b. Car had auto locked itself.
c. Park Lights had been left on (the little beeping alarm apparently was broken)
d. Most of the car doors had no key entry – they were all operated by the remote. The driver’s door had a key entry, but it was damaged…. So that left the only entry point being through the boot.
So! We had to pop the lock on the boot, then climb through the back seat to the front to rescue the keys. The Toplock locksmith on this job was Brad. Now Brad is the kind of guy you want to send out on late night locksmith jobs. He is a big, burly no nonsense fellow. But you don’t want to have Brad try and climb into your boot and through your back seat of you tiny little Toyota. Just not built for that sort of work.
Luckily our new client was a bit of a contortionist. Dead set. She was a contortionist and performed in a circus doing all these body bending tricks. She was into that boot and into the back seat in a flash, keys happily retrieved.
Of course the battery was dead as dead… so we ended up giving the young lass a quick jumpstart as well.
Whenever we provide entry to a vehicle or car…. We need to see proof the person gaining entry is the owner. With car’s its especially important that the person can provide such evidence. With a house, its easier to show provide prima facie evidence you are a resident using your driver’s license… then we investigate a bit further to ensure the driver’s license details are current.
With a car, it’s a bit more tricky. Drivers licenses don’t link to cars, and cars often don’t have rego papers in the glove box. So….we need to be a bit more creative with the prospective owner needing to be able to accurately describe things such as the contents of the glove box, the boot etc,
In this case, the young lady had left her car in Brunswick after driving to her 21st and she had left some presents in the car which she was able to describe. The problem was… the presents were clearly visible through the window… so this was not enough, anyone could have seen them. She then reluctantly described a particular present she’d received that she had stashed in the glove box. Without giving too much away, it had batteries in it and it wasn’t a tv remote control.
Being a consummate professional Brad apparently hardly even cracked a smile, but I note on the docket he filled out detailing what evidence he had found to show the client was the car owner he drew a picture of the item and added a smiley face.
Few people prepare to be locked out of their car or home and quite frankly, we don’t recommend anyone every does. Prepare so you AREN’T locked out of your house or car sure… but no one is ever really prepared to prove they are the owner/resident of the home/car when required to do so.
All the same? It’s good to have at least a basic idea of what is in your glovebox should the need arise. If the little beeping device that tells you your keys are still in the ignition or your lights have been left on is broken? Fix it. We are so reliant on these devices nowadays it’s only a matter of time till your are either locked out, or your lights are left on.
