"whilst getting out of the car one of the keys on the set caught on my trouser pocket and yanked the fob out of its slot! Now... The car carried on running and drives fine but I think I've broken something inside the slot as now the fob won't click in and stay in. I can push it in, it clicks and the ignition turns on so I can start the car but the key doesn't stay in the slot as it should; then when I wanna stop the car I can press the start stop button and it turns off fine but then I have to push the key back in to click it to turn the ignition off! So basically I can drive the car without the key on the ignition!
Has anyone at all had any experience like this??? And can anyone suggest how I can go about fixing this??
Any help or knowledge as to how the key works would be great."

The above description from another board member describes what I just experienced on my 2007 530i the other day. I now get a large image of the key with a slash through it and the word REMOTE on the iDrive screen.
Been getting lots of views on another board but no replies. Any ideas as to what has occurred at the ignition switch and what my options are? Would love to hear if OP resolved this issue from 2018.
TIA Synco

 

Sounds like you busted the ignition lock retaining pin. Replace it or disassemble and see if it's salvageable.

 

Thanks very much for your reply; I appreciate it.
Is this a DIY project or am I likely to need my local indie to tackle this? Looks like used ignition locks are avlbl on Ebay for about $25-$50.
And if I actually have to swap the ignition reader/lock, is coding involved or is the necessary coding in the key fob?
Would I be coding the new ignition lock or the key, or both? Is it coding I can do with Carly?
TIA

 

Apparently I didn't break the retaining pin, but something became dislodged and I was able to "fix" my broken ignition lock after watching a YouTube video of someone removing a stuck key fob from the lock. After that I went back out to the garage & reinstalled my repaired original lock and the car fired right up as usual. The key fob stayed in the ignition lock as it is supposed to.
Many thanks to plus1111 on another board for providing Bentley photos of how to remove the airbag, steering wheel, and column covers to access the ignition lock. His assistance was invaluable. And thanks to SpecializedGerman on Ebay who spent a lot of time discussing the programming issue before I purchased the replacement ignition lock.

 

It was salvageable, FTW.