Non-destructive entry first, always - and we re-key Schlage, Kwikset, and Baldwin locks on the spot while you watch
You get a price before we start. It does not change when we arrive. No surprises.
The Novak Lock & Security Chicago Guarantee
We stand behind every lock we install, every cylinder we rekey, and every emergency call we answer in Chicago. Since 2002, we’ve serviced over 60,000 locks, keys, and security systems, and every single job started with a written price and ended with a documented photo record. If the work isn’t done right, we make it right. That’s not a slogan. It’s Haven Standard Clause 1: the price on the phone is the price on the invoice, and Clause 7: the 365-Day Done Right Promise applies to every residential rekey, commercial master-key system, and emergency lockout we handle across the city.
What’s Covered
- Workmanship on every installation and repair. Our technicians are background-checked, uniformed, and trained to The Haven Standard. If a deadbolt binds after we leave, or a rekeyed cylinder doesn’t turn smoothly, we return and fix it at no charge under the 365-Day Done Right Promise.
- Parts integrity from entry-grade to high-security. We install Kwikset, Schlage, Baldwin, Medeco, Mul-T-Lock, and Abloy with factory-authorized procedures. If a part fails due to our installation error, we replace it and cover the labor. Manufacturer defects are handled through the brand’s own warranty channel, and we’ll document the failure with our photo record to speed that process.
- Site condition on departure. We leave the work area as we found it. No metal shavings on the threshold, no packaging left in the hallway. Our photo record includes a final site image, and customers receive that documentation at job completion.
- Arrival within the window we quote. For scheduled work in neighborhoods from Lincoln Park to Hyde Park, we commit to a specific arrival window. If we’re running late, we call. Emergency calls in Chicago are dispatched immediately with an estimated arrival time based on real traffic conditions, not a fantasy.
- Honest pricing with zero doorstep changes. Haven Standard Clause 1: the dispatcher quotes a firm price, and the technician is not permitted to change it on arrival. This rule has been in place since 2002. The written quote you approve is the exact amount on the invoice. No call-out surcharge gets added. No “discovered complications” appear after we’ve started.
Our Satisfaction Promise
If you’re not satisfied with our work, we make it right. The process is simple: call us at (331) 202-1318, describe what happened, and we schedule a return visit. A different technician often handles the callback so you get a fresh set of eyes on the issue. We review the original photo record, compare it to what’s on site, and fix the problem. No argument, no blame-shifting, no paperwork to prove you were wronged.
The 365-Day Done Right Promise covers workmanship defects, installation errors, and any situation where the lock doesn’t perform as specified in the written scope. It does not cover damage from break-in attempts, tenant misuse, or normal wear beyond the manufacturer’s rated cycle count. But even in those cases, we’ll diagnose the issue honestly and quote a fair repair price in writing before we touch a tool.
We’ve honored this promise on rekeys in Old Town where the tenant’s key broke off due to a previous locksmith’s rough cut. We’ve honored it on a Medeco installation in the West Loop where the strike plate needed adjustment after seasonal building settlement. The promise exists because locks are mechanical, buildings move, and sometimes we miss something. When we do, we own it.
Licensed & Insured Backing
Licensing and insurance are the real guarantee behind every written price and photo record. Novak Lock & Security Chicago is state-licensed and insured & bonded. That means if a technician accidentally damages a door frame during a high-security installation, our coverage handles it. If a liability question arises from a commercial access control project in the Loop, there’s a policy and a process.
We don’t publish a license number because we believe credentials should be verified, not performatively displayed. Ask us and we’ll provide it. Same with insurance certificates for property managers who need them for vendor files. The Haven Standard requires documentation on every visit because verbal promises evaporate; written records and proper coverage don’t.
Daniel Novak has operated this way since founding the company in 2002. The framework has a name now - The Haven Standard - but the practice predates it. Every lock installation, rekey, and emergency call in Chicago gets the same treatment: background-checked technician, written price, documented photo record, and the 365-Day Done Right Promise. That’s what we stand behind.
Written by Daniel Novak, Owner at Novak Lock & Security Chicago, serving Chicago since 2002.