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Good Afternoon! Over the past week we have noticed there have been reports of someone in the area trying car doors and also taking items from an unlocked vehicle. Having your car broken into and losing things to thieves can be very distressing. Here are a few simple steps you can take to keep your vehicle, and what's in it, safe. ALWAYS LOCK IT. Get into the habit of locking your vehicle even if you're only going to be away from it for a moment. If your vehicle has wing mirrors that fold in automatically when locked, make sure you lock it property. Offenders are looking for vehicles like this where the wing mirrors are still out because it is clear to them that the vehicle has been left unlocked. CLOSE WINDOWS AND THE SUN ROOF. Leaving windows open invites 'fishing' through the gap either by hand or modified items, i.e. hooks. They can also be used to unlock a door. Thieves can be ingenious. Don't give them an opportunity. SECURE YOUR NUMBER PLATES WITH TAMPER-RESISTENT SCREWS. Your local police have these. If you believe you would benefit from these then please get in contact. TAKE IT WITH YOU OR HIDE IT. Your mobile phone, coins for car parks, sunglasses, medications etc are items that can earn quick cash and are ideal for opportunist thieves. Remember, the cost of replacing your window is often much more than that of the items stolen. Wallets, handbags, purses and credit cards should never be left unattended in vehicles. HIDE ELECTRICAL ITEMS AND LEAVE NO CLUE. Leaving sat nav mounts, suction cup marks on windows, or cables on view gives it away that you might have left a sat nav, smartphone or other device in your car. Even if they can't see it, they might break in to see if its still stored in the car, out of sight. PARK IN WELL-LIT AND BUSIER AREAS. It can take less than 30 seconds to break into a vehicle. Parking in well-lit and busy areas increases the chances of a thief being seen, so they'll probably stay clear. TAKE YOUR DOCUMENTS WITH YOU. Having a vehicles registration and insurance documents could let a thief pretend to be the owner. Which means they could sell it on quiet easily. So, never leave any documents in the vehicle. We will be patrolling the area at different times of the day and also conducting CCTV enquiries in relation to this. If you do have any further information or see anything similar please do report it to us via 101 in a non-emergency or 999 in an emergency. Thanks, Your Local Neighbourhood Policing Team for Lea, Larches & Savick. |
