Forum Topic

Car Break Ins

On Saturday evening I was parked in Power Road and my car was broken into and they broke the front and back window. In order to not set the alarms off.I accept full responsibility and I should not have left things in my car.It was literally a gift bag that I hid on the floor and my coat that I had left on the back seat as I was hot as I was driving.After speaking to a family friend who also lives in Chiswick he witnessed two cars that had broken into.The moral of the story is these people are ruthless and brutal. I literally lost £3.5k in the space of an hour, not to mention the inconvenience of having to wait until 3am for a company to secure my car temporarily.Please learn from me and do not leave anything in your cars.LoveB xx

Bridget Adade ● 23d14 Comments

"..the regular sight of broken glass on our streets"Where is the local band to make an appropriately-named album ?

Richard Greenhough ● 1d

"No doubt they will blame a lack of numbers."A reason why it is important to report a crime.  I suspect many may not bother because of not wanting the hassle - am I right?  What is the easiest way to report a crime like this nowadays?

Philippa Bond ● 1d

I don't doubt that and there seem to be lots of videos online showing people how to do it for various car models. However, the preferred method of getting into a car seems to be a smashed window, judging by the regular sight of broken glass on our streets. Probably has something to do with the relevant time needed to gain access.

Mark Evans ● 1d

It is very easy to open a car door window if you know how, and no, it is not a coat hanger job.

Julian Pavey ● 6d

Would have thought professionals would know how to get into a car without breaking a window.

Janice Evans ● 6d

I think bait cars have been used but let's not forget that this type of crime is not as prevalent as it used to be and police may be right to use resources in problem areas.It is on the resurgence. Sorry to hark on about this but I think NFC reader may be the reason. We know that a lot of theft from vehicles was due to people leaving laptops on standby not realising they were still emitting signals. Perhaps the recent rise is due to the availability of more powerful NFC readers. I don't know this to be the case and searching on the internet hasn't given any more answers.I am sure I am right in saying that most theft from cars is not opportunitic and that the thieves will generally only smash a window if they are reasonably sure there is something with resale value or bank cards. Of course there will be cases of thrill seeking youths who are not 'professional' thieves breaking into cars but there is probably nothing that can be done about them.

Mark Evans ● 8d

Bait car, that's a great idea. Had mine done about seven years ago; there were two of them one on a bike around the Devonshire Rd, area. Nothing or nobody got done for it. Yet, I get a speeding ticket easy enough for doing 2mph over the legal 20mph speed limit. I respect the police & the law 100, but the real crime & criminals just jeep getting off or away with it pleading this & that and slap on the wrist, so unjust and unfair; whilst those of us who are the victim of costly crimes especially when sentimental attachments are stolen we carry the burdens forever.

Carl Johns ● 17d

Usually a small number of them doing a lot of cars.For a couple of years I've constantly asked the local police to use a "bait car", but there is no publicity they have!? No doubt they will blame a lack of numbers.

Nick Jenkins ● 20d

Flawed logic in my view. If they don't have an NFC device they just break the window and look.I saw one a couple of weeks ago in Bourne place using a torch to look through the drivers side window of a range rover. He wasn't bothered that I saw him. He said 'Alright grandad?'Cheeky shit!He was just looking but I have seen them break windows right in front of me there

david ward ● 20d

You may be right Janice although what I haven't been able to confirm is if thieves can use NFC devices to confirm there is a credit or debit card in a car. I still think it is possible that they narrow down their targets by doing this or using bluetooth to confirm there is something worth stealing inside and therefore my decades long practice of leaving bags in my car is not foolhardy as long as there are no cards or devices in them.

Mark Evans ● 21d

Bourne Place is another hotspot. Council/police have now fitted CCTV there and a warning sign. It's had no effect because there are still piles of broken glass appearing there. They wear hoodies and masks so the CCTV achieves nothing.I advise anyone parking there not to leave anything in their car and to roll back the boot cover so thieves can see there is nothing in there.

david ward ● 22d

That's how it is now sadly, Mark E was trying to tell me only specialist thieves will break into cars.....wrong Mark.

Janice Evans ● 22d

Last week, I stopped to tell a couple who were parking up (in the early evening) on an otherwise deserted Dolman Road that it was a hotspot (not in a good way) and perhaps they should consider parking somewhere else. Not sure if she misunderstood me, but the driver told me to mind my own business and she would park where she wanted to.45 minutes later and her rear window had been smashed (not by me). Another had been done in Belmont Road. You can't have anything nice. Scrotes will break a window to check if you have anything worth stealing. They don't care if you have an alarm or even if someone's watching. For the record, this was happening (at least in Dolman) long before the police station closed.

Gordon McDonald ● 23d

Thank you, I tried to explain a couple of weeks back that they will break into a car for anything left on seats or on view and to check before you leave your car.

Janice Evans ● 23d