Cars are expensive. Not only that, but the wealth of cool technology on the market nowadays means that there’s often a selection of valuables stored within a car – from sat navs to stereos and personal belongings. This makes cars desirable – particularly to criminals.

This is why it’s important to make sure that your car and its contents are well protected. After all, if you’ve forked out the money to own your own car, or the tech you keep inside it, then you want to make sure that nothing happens to it.

According to the Metropolitan Police guide about preventing car crime, it can take a thief as little as 10 seconds to steal your car, or the valuables you leave in it. Hampshire Constabulary say that vehicle crime accounts for more than a quarter of all recorded crime in the UK, costing the taxpayer more than £3 billion a year. So how can you help to make sure that it doesn’t happen to you?

Protecting yourself

The Met Police say: “Most vehicle crime is preventable and by taking a few simple, common-sense and inexpensive measures, you can help prevent your property being stolen.”

Police forces across the country all agree that there are a few simple ways to help keep your vehicle safe, such as:

  1. Always close the windows and the sunroof, and keep doors locked when you leave your car unattended.
  2. Don’t leave your belongings visible within the car. If there’s nothing left in your car, then it can’t be stolen.
  3. Think about where you park your car. If you can, park in a busy, well-lit area, and if possible try to leave your car in an area that is visible by CCTV cameras. It’s also a good idea to look out for car parks which are approved by the police Safer Parking scheme; you will be able to identify them by the Park Mark signs.
  4. If you’ve got a garage, try to keep your car parked in it when you’re at home. Hampshire Police say that your vehicle is 40 times less likely to be broken into if it is in a locked garage.
  5. Don’t leave valuables, such as a sat nav or a stereo, in your glove box. The Police advise that thieves will often check here first if they break into a car.

Not just valuables

When it comes to keeping your car safe, try not to just think about the potentially obvious attractions for potential thieves. For example, although you might take care to store your sat nav safely away from the vehicle, you might not think to move your coat. However, The Telegraph advise that it’s important to not just think in terms of valuables.

“Bags, coats, and even jumpers are all attractive to a thief, even if they aren’t worth much, because of the possibility that they might conceal something that is, so don’t leave them in view on the seats,” they say. Hampshire Police advise that thieves aren’t picky – often they will smash and grab first and look later to see if what they’ve stolen is valuable.

Also think about removing things like important paperwork from your car, or making sure it’s not on view, as these types of documents can be targeted for identity theft purposes.

Check out more of our information on keeping your car safe.

Drive like a girl telematics boxes can provide you with a theft tracking system, so that if your car is stolen we can use the GPS information to help find its exact location. Find out more about our theft recovery service, or get a quote today to find out how we can help you keep your car safe.