Article: How to Avoid Car Break-Ins and Vehicle Theft

How to Prevent Car Theft

AOL Autos recently published an interative article on how to prevent car break-ins and theft.  The article claims that about $1.255 billion in personal items and accessories are stolen from vehicles each year. The scary thing is that experts also claim that for every theft that occurs, there are several break-ins and attempted break-ins that occur before the ‘theft’ is committed- meaning, your car may be a repeat target.

For the full article visit AOL Autos, however, I’ve also provided a quick recap below:

1- Lock your Doors- 25% of thefts occur on unlocked vehicles

2-Keep It Tidy- Anything visible from the outside is a target

3- Conceal Valuables- Hide GPS systems, PDAs and any other valuables before leaving your car somewhere.

4- Stash Before you Park- Put grocery bags and other target items in the trunk before you get to the next shopping spot so potential thieves don’t see you putting them there.

5- Completely close windows and sunroofs- keeps alarms functioning correctly and prevents arms from reaching in

6- Get an Alarm- The noise alone may be enough to scare away a thief

7-  Keep your Factory Audio System-an aftermarket radio may make your car more attractive to thieves

8-Park for Visibility- Park where you car can be seen- this will prevent most thefts

9-Get a Steering Wheel Lock- this is a major deterrent for most thieves

10-Layer your Defenses- combine alarms, immobilizers and steering wheel locks in a joint effort to increase your changes of preventing theft