Getting locked out of your car is infuriating, especially if you're away from home. If you're not in a hurry and you're somewhere safe with phone coverage, the best course of action is to call a 24 hour locksmith to open your car for you.

Alternatively, provided your car has post-locks, you may be able to get into it quite easily by yourself, as long as you're wearing trainers or lace-up shoes. Here's how to do it.

How to Get Into Your Locked Car Using Laces

You will need a trainer or flat shoe lace and something with which to pry the door frame back slightly.

1. The first thing that you'll need to do is remove the laces from your shoes or trainers. Trainer laces are best for this job because they're flat, rather than round.  
2. Now, you'll need to tie a simple slip knot as close to the centre of your lace as you can get it. To do this, form a small loop about 10cm to the left of the lace's centre. Take the end of the right-hand side of the lace and push it through the loop towards you, leaving it loose. Pull the lace end back through the left-hand side of the loop, keeping pressure on the other end of the lace. Pull the two loops that you've made away from each other to leave just one loop. Now, if you pull the left-hand end of the lace, the loop should contract, forming a slip knot in the centre of the lace.  
3. You are now ready to open your car door. Slide something to act as a lever down between the door and the frame.  
4. Slip the lace down through the gap between the door and the frame. Keep one end of the lace on the roof of the car, secured with your finger so that it doesn't fall inside.  
5. Once the lace is inside the car, drag it along the door until the loop catches around the post-lock. Pull on the end of the lace to tighten the slip knot around the post.  
6. Keeping up a continual tension on the lace so that the knot doesn't loosen, pull gently upwards to lift the post-lock and disengage it. The door should now be unlocked and you're back in!

You can use the method outlined above to get back into your car to retrieve your keys. If you don't have a flat lace or suitable piece of string, call a 24-hour auto locksmith to do the job the professional way.