Lost your keys? What to do now

First, retrace your steps

Think of the last places where you certainly still had your keys: car, workplace, shops, café, sports club.

• Call the shops and venues you visited: found items are often kept at the till or the counter.
• Ask the bus, train or taxi company: transport operators have their own lost and found offices.
• Check jacket and bag pockets, car seats and footwells.

Your item carries a Qevik key tag or card

Whoever finds it can scan the QR code, or enter the engraved ID on qevik.com, and let you know through the form on your page: their message reaches you by email. They can also drop the item at a Qevik agency or a lost and found office. On your side:

• Check what they will see: in “My Profile”, the preview “What someone who scans your QR code sees” shows it exactly. Make a way to reach you visible, a phone number for example, if you want to be called directly. Your address does not have to be part of it.
• Keep an eye on your inbox, spam folder included: that is where the finder's message arrives, and the notice from a lost and found office that has registered the item under your name.
• Check “My items and found items” in your account: an item registered under your name by a lost and found office appears there.
• An office may ask for your contact details: the request appears under “Contact requests”, where you accept or decline it.
• To collect the item from an agency, bring ID: the agency may email you a one-time code to confirm the handover.
• Item provided by your employer: report it under “My items” with “Report as lost”, and your manager is notified by email.
• Still follow the other steps in this guide: Qevik helps the finder reach you, it does not guarantee the item will be returned.

Ask at the lost and found office

In Germany, anyone who finds an item must generally report it to the person who lost it or to the competent authority, usually the municipal lost and found office (§ 965 BGB). Ask there, more than once: found items often arrive a few days later.

The Qevik map shows lost and found offices and drop-off points near you.

Who to inform

• For a rented home: your landlord or property manager. If the key belongs to a master key system, a replacement may be needed.
• For a company or office key: your employer, as soon as possible.
• Your liability insurance: check whether the loss of keys belonging to someone else is covered.

When to change the lock

If your key ring can be traced back to your address, for example through a name tag, a tag with your address or an ID card in the same bag, seriously consider changing the lock. Without such clues, the risk is much lower.

Next time: be reachable without giving away your address

Your name and address do not belong on your key ring. A Qevik key tag carries an identifier and a QR code instead. Whoever finds it scans the code and can notify you. You decide what they see about you, and your address does not have to be part of it.