Losing your car keys is bad. Losing them on a mountain? That’s a nightmare. You often hear to be extra careful with your keys when doing remote activities such as hiking or snowboarding because if you’re parked in a remote lot, losing them can be a real bear. But one snowboarder learned this lesson the hard way …
Losing your car keys is bad. Losing them on a mountain? That’s a nightmare. You often hear to be extra careful with your keys when doing remote activities such as hiking or snowboarding because if you’re parked in a remote lot, losing them can be a real bear. But one snowboarder learned this lesson the hard way when he lost his rental car keys—and it cost him more than a season’s pass would have.
The moment it all went wrong
It started as a perfect trip. Redditor /u/1BobbyLane took his 20-year-old daughter snowboarding in Utah. On day one, he kept the rental car key in a zipped, velcro-secured pocket. It made him anxious all day. But by the time they left, the key was still there. Cue the relief.
On day two, he made a small but crucial mistake. He moved his keys to the outside pocket in his jacket. “I decided to put the keys in the vertical chest pocket figuring I would never open that pocket.” He was wrong.
Later, he hit the lodge for a couple of beers. That’s when he made the mistake. “I had my ID and credit card out and for some stupid reason after the purchase, I put the ID, credit card, and one of the two beers in the vertical chest pocket.” Then, back up the lift for a few more runs. Falls. Cartwheels even.
They decided to call it quits a bit early. At 2 p.m., they reached the car. And his zipper was open. The key was gone.
The scramble for the lost rental car keys begins
Panic set in. No sugarcoating it. He wrote, “We were f—–.”
First stop: lost and found. No luck.
Next, the parking lot crew tried to break into the man’s rental car for him, without the keys. Maybe they could at least grab his wallet and spare clothes. “To no avail.”
Then, an Uber back to the hotel. The snowboarder figured he could just grab a spare key from the rental car company. Turns out, that’s not how it works. No spares. No way to even reach the airport counter by phone.
So he called Dollar Rental’s Roadside Assistance. They were way too optimistic. “We’ve dispatched a locksmith and a tow truck, ETA is 45 minutes.”
He was worried the truck would get there before him. So he splurged on another Uber and rushed back up the mountain.
The poor guy waited and waited for the locksmith. At 7 pm he finally called it quits. He got back to his hotel and found a message from the rental car company: “There is snow on the roads and the locksmith won’t be able to make it up today.”
The cost of an open zipper–and losing your rental car keys
The next morning, Roadside Assistance finally got moving. A tow operator got the car open so he could grab his wallet and gear. Then, he towed the car back to the rental agency—eventually. The airport counter was closed, so it had to sit overnight. Final bill? Steeper than a black diamond trail!
- Lockout: $80
- Tow: $505
- Lost key replacement: $250
- Overnight storage: $40
- Tow back to the airport: $125
- Admin fee: $35
Total: $1,035. The rental itself? $122.
Moral of the story? Do not ever lose your rental car keys.
Best practice is to always store keys in a zipped interior pocket. Some coats even have a lanyard inside for double security. Pick one pocket for your keys and never open it unless absolutely necessary. Because losing your keys on the slopes? That’s a mistake you’ll pay for. Literally.
You can read the snowboarder’s account of the lost key incident in the Reddit post embedded below, and find out about the heroic Uber driver who saved him a very long hike:
TIFU Lost the Keys to my Rental Car
byu/1bobbylane intifu