Frosty Morning Car thefts

With the winter fast approaching and the inevitable drop in temperature, Police are issuing a warning to all car owners who start their car on a frosty morning and then go back indoors, even for a moment - Please Don't!

You leave yourselves open to the vehicle being stolen, opportunist thieves wander round looking for cars to steal. The easiest option for them is to steal a car with the keys and they know that in frosty weather, there will always be a car engine running somewhere while the car defrosts and the driver is inside the house. 

This not only causes you inconvenience but information from the AA states 'Most car insurance policies will not cover theft of your car if it has been left unlocked with the keys in the ignition.'

Leaving your car engine running while you go back indoors for any reason is a huge risk but incredibly last year a surprising number of people did it in Solihull and a number of cars were stolen as a result. There were 129 cars were stolen this way in the West Midlands with over 10 cars being stolen in Solihull whilst defrosting during last Winter.

In addition if you leave your car running on a road without proper supervision you actually commit an offence for which you could be fined or issued with a fixed penalty notice.

Our advice is that wherever possible, you store your car in a garage. If you do not have a garage, cover the windscreen with a purpose made cover, newspaper or cardboard to keep the frost off. Use a scraper or de-icer, or pour hot (not boiling) water on the windscreen.

 

Local Police officers will be conducting additional patrols in residential areas during cold weather, help us to frustrate would be car thieves and don't leave your car running.