# Why do they give two keys with every rental car? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 5, 2008, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198 "2008-05-05T21:46:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Triskadecamus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@Triskadecamus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triskadecamus)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/21 "2011-08-12T02:25:54Z")
Concerning titles, In my state, the owner of record can get a new title for a couple of bucks. Storing all those titles and keeping up to date on where they are would be a lot more expensive. When I told a cop friend of mine I had misplaced my title, and kept putting off getting a new one, he told me not to bother, no one ever has them. If I got it now, eventually I would either lose that one, or find the old one, so it would be better to wait until I actually needed one. (like moving to another state, or selling the Car.) I am sure Avis, Hertz, etc have all their cars titled in states that keep electronic records. Tris ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/22 "2011-08-12T02:45:52Z")
I rent from Enterprise occasionally here in Chicago when my car is in the shop. I almost always get 2 keys (sometimes a regular key and a valet key) on a standard key ring. I asked about this, and I was told they preferred to keep both keys together so THEY didn’t have to keep track of one and possibly lose it. Whatever. ---
**Author:** ![spifflog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@spifflog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spifflog)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/23 "2011-08-12T11:46:06Z")
Whatever, until I lose them and have to pay to get two keys made. Another area where it works for the company, but not the comsumer. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/24 "2011-08-12T12:43:56Z")
> [@Una\_Persson](#): > > I asked once and was told that “people lose one all the time”. When I pointed out that both keys are together on a non-opening ring, they shrugged. Drives me bonkers. That and the stupid fob and plastic key chain thing is a huge mess in your pocket. I ask once and they said it would be to hard to keep track of them if they seperated them. For chirst sake, two keys on one fob do me zero good. And if I loose them I have to pay for both. If you guys would just keep the ‘extra’ in a drawer somewhere, you could actually be of help if I lost one too. Idiots. ---
**Author:** ![Cowboy8467](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b5e925/32.png) [@Cowboy8467](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cowboy8467)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/25 "2011-08-12T14:07:41Z")
Last time I rented a car I only received one switchblade style key, that had the combo key/FOB. ---
**Author:** ![brad\_d](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@brad\_d](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brad_d)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/26 "2011-08-12T16:18:00Z")
I’ve gotten both one key and two keys (semi-permanently bound together) enough times while renting cars that I consider neither circumstance unusual. I’ve occasionally had to hunt down the owner’s manual to figure out how to disable that detestable (to me) “feature” where the car honks at you when you lock/unlock it using the remote. (The steps to do that tend to vary by car maker and generally aren’t intuitive.) Nearly without exception I’ve found the manual in the spare tire well, still in the shrink-wrap. ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/27 "2011-08-13T00:05:30Z")
I rent from Avis a lot (business travel). I get two keys every time. I’ve wondered about this too. ---
**Author:** ![al\_chambers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3bc359/32.png) [@al\_chambers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/al_chambers)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/28 "2013-02-10T17:25:12Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > Dollar also gives you the two-keys-permanently-together. > > I’m wondering if the deal is that they want to make you ASK for the keys to be separated, in case of there being multiple drivers; the answer would have to wait for someone to post who has ever actually ASKED for the keys to be separated. I have rented from Hertz on a few occasions and have been irked by this. I did go into a Hertz office with the keys and asked if they would separate them for me, and they replied that they were not allowed to. I then asked if I could separate them and they answered rather cryptically that they were not authorized to give permission for this. The problem is if you lose the ring you have to pay for 2 expensive keys. If you lock them in the car the second key which would be a safeguard is useless attached to the first key. Hertz should really take the lead here and do something about this ridiculous situation. ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/29 "2013-02-10T17:39:43Z")
I just requested Avis to separate the two keys, one for me and one for my GF, and at first the kid behind the counter agreed to try, but then his boss came up, and said, “Nope, can’t do that, impossible…” and wouldn’t listen to any of my reasoning or pleading. ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/30 "2013-02-10T18:51:35Z")
They’re not just on a key ring any more. I’ve had them with a crimped metal wire. Two keys plus that huge plastic thing, inseparable. I was trying to cut it apart on the metal door jamb, but couldn’t, Next time I get one of those, I’m making a side-trip to the wire cutter section of Home Depot first thing. “I don’t know what happened. It just broke. It was like that already.” ---
**Author:** ![bonitahi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7993a0/32.png) [@bonitahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bonitahi)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/31 "2013-02-10T22:41:14Z")
“Have rented from them perhaps 10 times in 10 years. Only got one key.” The same key worked for all those cars? ---
**Author:** ![Stealth\_Potato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Stealth\_Potato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stealth_Potato)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/32 "2013-02-11T05:07:12Z")
I rent from Enterprise all the time and usually get two keys inseparably linked, together with that pleasant little warning that the average key replacement cost is $225. I’ve never asked, but I always figured that the key replacement cost was per key and included a generous markup, so linking the keys together was just their way of making sure that if you lost a key, you lost both of them. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/33 "2013-02-11T05:14:41Z")
The last few times I’ve rented wheels (mostly cars, but also pickup trucks), I’ve only got one key per rental. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/34 "2013-02-11T05:28:37Z")
> [@MC\_E](#): > > My speculation is that they want to have both keys with the car when they sell it or otherwise dispose of it. The way rental cars are moved around the country based on demand, it would be a PITA to make sure the second key/fob made it to the sale. Much easier to keep it with the car than in some “key warehouse” in Poughkeepsie. On the nose. They do this so that the car goes to auction with both keys. ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/35 "2013-02-11T16:32:22Z")
I asked if I could separate the keys once – can’t remember which company I rented from. When I’m traveling with the dog, I like to keep the key in the ignition and leave the car running so the dog gets A/C, and then take the spare with me and lock from the outside. (Emergency brake on in case dog knocks car into gear and crashes.) The rental agent told me that the keys couldn’t be separated from each other and if I did it, they would charge me $250 when I returned the car. I didn’t really buy that, but I didn’t want to risk $250 and I don’t remember what I did about The Dog Problem. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/36 "2013-02-11T17:03:25Z")
zombie or no with two keys then if one key has a battery failure then you have a second chance without having to buy a replacement battery in likely an unknown area with a dead vehicle. ---
**Author:** ![hussle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f4b2a3/32.png) [@hussle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hussle)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/37 "2013-02-11T17:26:31Z")
I work for a rental car company, in the side that deals with the paperwork and “spare” keys. The 2 keys thing is done in the US, and is moving to Canada, but its a new(ish) policy so it will take some time to become the normal thing. The reason has to do with selling the car, and making sure that the dealer who purchases the car gets a spare key with the car. Why is it tethered together? The 2nd key is kept in a central location, often quite far away from the renting branch. When a customer loses a key the car, usually, must be reprogrammed to create a new key. This process renders the 2nd key at the central location useless. Might as well just have both keys together then as it simplifies the delivery process on the back end. ---
**Author:** ![hussle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f4b2a3/32.png) [@hussle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hussle)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/38 "2013-02-11T17:28:41Z")
> [@Stealth\_Potato](#): > > I rent from Enterprise all the time and usually get two keys inseparably linked, together with that pleasant little warning that the average key replacement cost is $225. I’ve never asked, but I always figured that the key replacement cost was per key and included a generous markup, so linking the keys together was just their way of making sure that if you lost a key, you lost both of them. 😃 Sorry for the double post but I missed this. The $225 is just a generic warning. The customer will pay just the cost of the key replacement, but that is quite variable depending on the make/model of the car so we just put a generic number in there, big enough to make sure people pay attention. Some keys cost a lot more then 225, some a lot less ---
**Author:** ![ozomolv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9fc29f/32.png) [@ozomolv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ozomolv)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2013, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/39 "2013-10-24T02:08:48Z")
Well this is a first for me to ever have two pairs of keys. Its very uncomfortable if you are going to have the car for a couple of days. Especially when you have a set of house keys. Now you have to carrry two sets. The biggest problem is that these new car keys are very big and bulky. I asked enterprise if they can remove one from the ring and they said no. It was a pain in the ass because I have four keys. Two regular keys and two remote control keys plus enterprise key ring. So I was determined to take it off and its possible to open it up with out having to cut the cable. First just be strong and pull the key ring apart from where it connects. Onece it opens up you can take the key out and put the others away. It will be easier to open it back uP again when u are ready to return the car back again since you all ready broke the seal. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2013, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198/40 "2013-10-24T13:23:35Z")
Zombies don’t rent cars. But for normal people…the rental car companies are tasking the renter with keeping up with both sets of keys so that after a year when they sell the car, both sets of keys are still with the car being sold. If they separate them, more likely for one set to get lost and not be available when it comes time for the company to sell the car. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-give-two-keys-with-every-rental-car/448198.md?page=3)