Car rifled through more than 3 times now

[ChefsKisser]

Our car on our drive has been opened overnight and had the glove box and front seat rifled through 3 times now. It also happened to our old car twice. DH is blaming me for not locking it but I’m sure I do. Our old car would auto lock if left for over a minute too so even if I didn’t lock it it would have been locked.
How can this happen? How can we stop it? It’s really unnerving obviously. We keep nothing of value in the car so nothing ever really gets taken.

This is a regular occurrence in our street (SE London).

It’s happened so often I barely bat an eyelid as they never damage anything. Obviously we don’t leave anything in the car worth stealing so they don’t get anything from us.

Some Neighbours with nicer cars have had them stolen. They’re since gone on to have gates fitted on their driveways/ghost immobilisers etc.

Our cars lock automatically,these thieves are one step ahead. Even the faraday pouches are not a guaranteed solution.

We are the same. For what it’s worth we have clear cameras on the driveway and a movement activated light, plus we know the car is locked. It still happens once a month. I’m not sure there’s anything more you can do.

Interestingly, this week's newsletter from Which? Is about car theft. There is a top ten list of the most targeted cars. They also say that keyless cars are easier to steal. I have recently changed my car and am going to buy a steering wheel lock.

London here too - happens regularly on our street (we have shared footage on the street wattsap!!). Change / sunglasses etc taken but no cars stolen

Police have come but not done much - I’ve taken to leaving glove box open as a message : I think it says ‘I’m expecting you : nothing of interest here’!

Happens regularly in our street (London) according to road WhatsApp. Usually no damage, amazing how many people don’t lock cars but leave hand bags and iPads in them! Happened to us when husband forgot to lock, all they took was the in car charging cable. He was mostly annoyed about the hand prints left on the window! Worth getting an old fashioned steering wheel lock also.

I wonder about modern key fobs - whether when I shove it into my bag the button is accidentally pressed. They are a pain. And the fact they work from a distance - surely that only advantages the thief.

I've also had my car rifled filled through multiple times, and every time I had left it unlocked (Duh!).

(My CCTV has often revealed the error of my ways...)

If your keys are susceptible to relay theft, don't forget to secure the spare keys as well.

You may also find that your keys automatically sleep after a few minutes without movement, so faraday cages are redundant.

I know all Mercedes keys after 2018 sleep, but it's easy enough to test by leaving them on the ground for 5 minutes and seeing if you can still open the door.

I leave my glove compartment open with all that’s in it visible. They can see there’s nothing worth stealing. And I leave absolutely nothing else in the car.

A pp suggested leaving it unlocked which would save windows from being broken. Something I can’t put my finger on bothers me regarding insurance. They wouldn’t pay out if they knew it had been left unlocked, but then you wouldn’t claim if someone had only opened a door and had a rummage. So I suppose in that scenario it doesn’t matter but what if it was stolen? Is it still possible to hot wire cars? Leaving it unlocked would make that one step easier but it would be obvious the car had been unlocked if it was recovered. Are stolen cars ever recovered?

I'm surprised anyone is daft enough to leave anything valuable in the car. If I pop into the Co-op on my way home from work I take my laptop bag in with me.

A colleague mentioned tucking a small washer in between the handles of the car when it's locked. If anyone has a sneaky try off your car you'll find the washers on the ground. Which can act as a signal to get neighbours to check video footage.