Replace a Lost or Damaged Access Card or Key Fob

Lost Your Card or Fob? Start Here

The most important step is identifying your credential format before ordering. Most access cards carry printed numbers on the front or back — a facility code plus a card number — and many also show a format name or part number. If you have another working card from the same site, those numbers are all we need to produce a matching replacement. Our card and fob identification guide walks through how to read every common number field.

If you cannot read your card — the print has worn off, the fob has no visible markings, or the credential is physically damaged — we can work from a sample read. Send us the original or a reader-generated credential report and we identify the format from the raw data. This covers the majority of 125 kHz LF proximity formats, all standard Wiegand bit formats, and most 13.56 MHz smart-card variants.

Not sure whether your card runs at 125 kHz or 13.56 MHz? The frequency affects how a replacement is produced, but it is usually easy to determine from the card body or the reader specification. Our guide on 125 kHz vs 13.56 MHz cards explains the physical and operational differences in plain language so you can confirm before you order.

What We Need to Make a Replacement

For open-format proximity credentials — standard 26-bit Wiegand, HID ProxCard II, Indala FS and similar — we need three things: the format name or a sample read, the facility code (also called site code), and the card number to assign to the replacement. If you need a duplicate of an existing credential, supply the card number printed on the original. If you need a fresh number that continues a sequence, supply the last issued number in your range.

For less common proprietary formats, additional encoding parameters may apply. HID Corporate 1000 48-bit cards, for example, carry a corporate ID field in addition to the standard facility code and card number. ADT 31-bit proximity cards carry a distinct site-code structure. Our order form captures these fields so replacements match your existing credential population precisely.

If your site uses hotel-style room access credentials — such as VingCard MIFARE Plus 2K or VingCard MIFARE Plus 4K key cards — the property management or lock system handles final enrollment. We supply compatible blanks built to the correct substrate specification; your system writes the room permissions and check-out date as it would with any standard key card.

• Format name or part number (from card face, fob label, or panel report)
• Facility code / site code
• Card number (duplicate of lost card, or next number in your sequence)
• Any additional format-specific fields (corporate ID, extended site code, etc.)

Open Formats vs Secured Smart Cards

Open-format proximity credentials — the 125 kHz LF range and standard Wiegand bit-format cards — carry their credential data in clear and are reproduced directly to your exact facility code and card number. This covers the vast majority of replacement enquiries: HID ProxCard, Indala, EM4100-based formats, Gallagher Cardax proximity cards, Inner Range 36-bit cards, and hundreds more. See our guide on compatible vs genuine access cards for a full explanation of what 'compatible' means technically.

Secured smart credentials — including HID Seos, MIFARE DESFire AES, iCLASS SE, and iCLASS Elite — operate differently. The credential data is protected by cryptographic keys held exclusively by your access-control system. Compatible blanks built on genuine NXP or equivalent silicon are supplied to you; your panel or enrollment station then programs the keys and credential record onto each blank exactly as it would with any other new card. This is normal enrollment, not a workaround. Your security administrator or installer carries out that step.

Some formats occupy a middle ground: Indala FlexSecur credentials use a proprietary encoding scheme but are not cryptographically secured in the same way as DESFire AES. Similarly, HID H800002 46-bit cards extend the standard Wiegand structure with additional bit fields rather than adding a cryptographic layer. For these formats, we produce replacements by encoding to your documented credential parameters — no enrollment step required at your end.

Single Spares or Several at Once

We supply single replacement credentials with no minimum order — useful when one employee loses a card or a fob case breaks. Ordering a small reserve at the same time is common practice: a pair of extras encoded to the next available numbers in your sequence means the next loss is resolved in minutes, not days. Our bulk and wholesale service handles larger runs for facilities managing ongoing credential turnover.

If you work with multiple sites or manage access for several tenants, our format-on-file service records your format, facility code, and encoding parameters after the first order. Reorders need only a card count and number range — no re-specifying the format each time. This suits facilities managers, property managers, and the locksmiths and integrators who supply them. For sites running a discontinued credential — a format the original manufacturer no longer produces — our discontinued format replacement service covers that separately.

Deactivating the Lost Credential

Ordering a replacement does not automatically deactivate the lost card in your access-control panel. That step is handled within your system by your security administrator: the lost credential's card number is removed or suspended in the panel software, and the new card's number is either added fresh or inherits the same access rights. For open-format credentials where the replacement carries the same card number as the original, deactivating the old number first is standard practice — it ensures the lost card no longer grants entry from the moment it is removed.

If your site issues credentials with unique card numbers (where the replacement gets the next available number rather than the original number), your administrator adds the new number to the relevant access groups and removes the old one. Either workflow is straightforward within any current access-control platform. If you are unsure of the process for your specific system, your integrator or the panel manufacturer's support line is the right resource — this is routine administrative procedure, not a technical edge case.

For 13.56 MHz smart-card systems, deactivation at the panel is equally straightforward. Because the cryptographic keys never leave your system, a lost card that has been removed from the panel database cannot authenticate — the blank we supply to replace it carries no active credential until your system enrolls it. This is the designed security model for these platforms.

Request a Replacement Quote

Use the contact form to describe what you need: the format or a photo of the original credential, your facility code, and the number you want on the replacement. For formats in the 13.56 MHz smart-card range, note whether you need pre-enrolled credentials (where your system administrator handles enrollment) or if you'd like us to confirm the blank specification first. We respond with a format confirmation and lead time before you commit to an order.

Security ID Systems is an independent manufacturer and supplier of compatible access-control credentials and is not affiliated with, authorized by, or endorsed by HID Global, Indala, Gallagher, Inner Range, ADT, or VingCard.