Locksmith Phone Intake Checklist — What to Ask Every Caller

Every locksmith call is a dispatch decision waiting to happen. Skip a question and you arrive at the wrong address, bring the wrong tools, or quote a price you cannot honor. This checklist covers the information you should capture on every call — whether you answer the phone yourself or an AI agent does it for you.

1. Service type identification

The first question on any locksmith call is: what kind of work does the caller need? Locksmith services fall into several categories, and the category determines everything that follows — pricing, technician skill matching, and urgency.

• Lockout — the caller is locked out of a vehicle, home, or business and needs immediate access.
• Rekey — changing the internal pins of an existing lock so old keys no longer work. Common after moving or losing keys.
• Lock change — removing an existing lock and installing a new one. May involve hardware selection.
• Automotive — car key replacement, key fob programming, or vehicle lockout. Requires vehicle details.
• Commercial — master key systems, access control, high-security cylinders, or business lockouts. Often requires on-site inspection.

Getting this right at the start prevents wasted follow-up questions and ensures you route the call to a technician with the right skills. For how Zephaux structures these as separate configurable service types, see Zephaux for Locksmiths.

2. Location and access details

You cannot dispatch a technician without a precise location. For locksmiths, this is more nuanced than a standard service call because access situations vary widely.

• Full address — street, city, and ZIP code. The ZIP code is especially important for service area validation.
• Location type — residential home, apartment building, commercial property, or roadside (for automotive).
• Access notes — is the caller on-site? Is there a gate, parking restriction, or building access requirement? For apartment lockouts, is building management or a landlord involved?
• Parking — where can the technician park? This matters in dense urban areas and for mobile automotive jobs.

3. Vehicle details for automotive jobs

Automotive locksmithing is highly vehicle-specific. Key blanks, fob programming procedures, and lockout techniques vary by manufacturer, model, and year. If the service type is automotive, capture these details before quoting or dispatching:

• Make — e.g., Ford, Honda, Toyota.
• Model — e.g., F-150, Civic, Camry.
• Year — critical because key and fob systems change within model lines across years.
• Key type — traditional metal key, transponder chip key, push-to-start fob, or smart key. The caller may not know the technical term, so ask whether the key goes in the ignition or if the car starts with a button.
• VIN — if available, the vehicle identification number helps with key cutting and programming. The caller can usually find it on the dashboard or insurance documents.

Without these details, you risk arriving without the correct key blank or programming equipment — a costly trip for both you and the customer.

4. Urgency assessment

Not every locksmith call is an emergency, but the ones that are demand a different response. Sort every call into one of two urgency levels:

• Emergency — the caller is locked out, stranded, or facing a security threat (broken lock after a break-in, for example). These calls need the fastest available technician and typically carry an emergency service rate.
• Routine — the caller wants to schedule a rekey, lock change, or consultation. There is time flexibility, and standard pricing applies.

Emergency calls should bypass the standard intake script's pace — the priority is getting a tech dispatched, not collecting every detail upfront. Routine calls allow for a fuller intake. For how to configure this logic, see How Zephaux Works.

5. Pricing approach

How you quote on the phone depends on the job. Not every call can be given a firm price, and trying to force one leads to either undercharging or unhappy customers. Use one of three approaches:

• Fixed price — for predictable jobs with no variability. Example: a standard residential rekey where you know the lock type.
• Price range — for jobs with known variability. Example: a lock change where the final cost depends on which lock hardware the customer chooses.
• Inspection-required — for complex jobs where a firm quote is not possible without seeing the lock, vehicle, or property in person. Provide a starting price or trip fee, and schedule an on-site assessment.

For a full breakdown of when to use each approach — including how to handle after-hours and emergency pricing — see Phone Quotes and Arrival Windows.

6. Service area validation

Before you commit to a job, confirm the caller's location is within your service area. This is where the ZIP code from step 2 pays off.

• ZIP code check — is the caller's location within the ZIP codes or regions you serve?
• Travel fee — if the location is at the edge of your area or beyond, is there a travel fee? Communicate it clearly before dispatching.
• Out-of-area referral — if the caller is outside your area, decline politely and refer them to another provider if you can. Do not schedule a job you cannot serve profitably.

7. Technician skill matching

If you run a crew, the intake information determines which technician is right for the job. Even solo operators should confirm they have the right tools and key blanks before heading out.

• Skill match — does the job require a specific skill (automotive programming, commercial master keying, safe work)?
• Availability — is the right technician available within the caller's urgency window?
• Tooling — for automotive and commercial jobs, confirm the technician has the necessary key blanks, programming tools, or hardware before dispatch.

8. Callback information

Always capture a callback number before ending the call. If the technician is delayed, gets lost, or needs to confirm a detail, you need a way to reach the customer.

• Primary phone number — the best number to reach the caller.
• Alternate contact — a secondary number or name, especially for emergency lockouts where the caller's phone battery may be low.
• Preferred contact method — call or text. Many customers prefer text updates on technician arrival.

How Zephaux is designed to automate this intake

This checklist is a lot to run through manually on every call — especially at 2 AM or while you are under a sink on another job. Zephaux is designed so that an AI agent captures this same information through a conversational flow, using the service types, pricing rules, and service area you configure in the app.

Here is how the pieces map:

• Service type identification — the AI agent asks the caller what they need and matches it to your configured service types (lockout, rekey, automotive, etc.).
• Location and service area — the caller's ZIP code is checked against your configured service area. Out-of-area callers are referred politely.
• Vehicle details — for automotive services, the AI agent asks for make, model, and year as configured follow-up questions.
• Urgency — the AI agent applies your emergency detection rules and routes accordingly.
• Pricing — the AI agent applies your per-service pricing rules (fixed, range, or inspection-required) and refuses unsupported prices rather than guessing.
• Technician matching — the AI agent checks technician skills and availability from your configuration.
• Callback — the AI agent captures a callback number and confirmation details.

Status: Live AI call answering requires a connected voice provider, which is planned and not yet available. Today you can configure all of these rules and test the intake logic in the Test Lab simulator. See How Zephaux Works for the full setup walkthrough and Zephaux for Locksmiths for the locksmith-specific configuration.

Putting it into practice

Whether you use a checklist, a script, or an automated system, the goal is the same: capture the right information to make a confident dispatch decision. Print this checklist, tape it next to your phone, and run through it on your next few calls. You will find which questions are essential for your specific mix of work and which you can streamline. When you are ready to automate the intake, Zephaux is designed to run this same flow — configured to your services, your area, and your pricing.

For related reading, see Phone Quotes and Arrival Windows and Call Forwarding vs Number Porting.