Rekey After Employee Termination — Charlotte

Firing or losing an employee creates an immediate security exposure. Even when you collect "all the keys" they handed in, you have no way to verify they didn't make copies during their employment — at any hardware store, kiosk, or friend with a key duplicator. Rekeying after termination is the only way to be certain the former employee can no longer enter your building.

Why Rekeying After Termination Matters

A standard pin-tumbler key (Schlage SC1, Kwikset KW1, Yale Y1) can be duplicated in 60 seconds at any hardware store. Most employers don't realize how common this is — employees copy keys for convenience (giving a copy to a spouse, leaving one at home, etc.) without ever telling the employer. Once that key exists, collecting the original at termination doesn't make you secure.

Rekeying changes the internal pin configuration of every cylinder — instantly invalidating every copy of the old key, no matter how many were made or where they are. The terminated employee's keys are now scrap metal.

Our Termination Rekey Process

1. Quick Phone Quote

Tell us how many doors and what type of business — we give a price range immediately. Most small offices fall between $200 and $500 total.

2. Walk-Through (5–10 minutes)

On-site, we identify which cylinders the employee had access to. For most office terminations this is straightforward — perimeter doors plus their office plus shared spaces (supply, IT, break room).

3. Rekey Every Affected Cylinder

8–12 minutes per cylinder. For master-key systems, we update the master and change keys to the new pinning. We work around your operations — most offices don't even notice the work.

4. New Keys + Documentation

You get new keys (typically 4 per cylinder), an itemized invoice listing every cylinder rekeyed, and a sign-off receipt confirming the old keys no longer work. Useful for HR records, insurance audits, and if any liability question arises later.

5. Optional: Audit Old Master Key Records

If you have an existing master-key system, this is also a good time to update your key-control records — who has what change key, who has the master, and what the master's pin combination is. We help you document everything cleanly.

Common Termination Scenarios

• Manager fired — full perimeter rekey + any internal doors they accessed
• Office staff layoff — group rekey when multiple people leave at once (we work fast across many cylinders)
• Trusted employee left under bad terms — top-priority same-day rekey, often after-hours
• Maintenance / facilities staff — usually had master access, so it's a full master-system rekey
• Cleaning crew change — rekey perimeter and any specific cleaning-related cylinders
• Restaurant / retail staff turnover — back-of-house and storefront rekey, often during off hours

After-Hours & Emergency Service

The most-stressful version of this call: it's Friday at 5pm, someone was let go, and you need to ensure they can't enter the building over the weekend. We do that. Call before close-of-business or early evening, we deploy that night, and your building is secure before morning.

Schedule Termination Rekey

Call 704-905-6600. We treat this with discretion — our techs don't ask why or discuss the termination, just do the work. Same-day service is the norm.